


Ships in the Night

by LonesomeBard



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Alcohol, Drama & Romance, Eventual Romance, F/F, Forgiveness, Grief/Mourning, Masturbation, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, Wakes & Funerals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-29
Updated: 2016-09-29
Packaged: 2018-08-18 13:40:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 32,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8163896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LonesomeBard/pseuds/LonesomeBard
Summary: Chloe Price and Kate Marsh couldn't be further apart based on their style and values. They are however brought together in a moment of desperation after a shared tragedy. This story will follow how the two young women will deal with their loss and how their relationship will evolve. Cover art credits go to fellow LiS fan, Harpuia.





	1. Chapter 1

** **

**Monday**

_Just be cool, you've got that bastard Prescott by the balls,_ Chloe Price thought as she stepped inside the Blackwell academy main building. _He drugged and abused you and he's gonna pay for it, literally. Once he pays, you're gonna settle things with Frank and you can concentrate in finding Rachel._

It felt funny for Chloe to be walking among all the students. Her appearance certainly stood out from the rest of the people with her short hair that was dyed blue and her outfit that consisted of ragged jeans, boots, dirty oversized tank top and a brown jacket. Chloe had not been here since she was expelled.

 _I wonder, if I'm gonna run into Max?_ Maxine Caulfield was her childhood friend, who had moved to Seattle five years ago and now returned here to do her senior year at Blackwell. _Oh fuck her! She's been here like a month and not once bothered to even text. Some BFF she is,_ Chloe thought as she approached the girls' restroom.

Just as she was about to reach for the restroom door knob, a shot rang out from inside. Chloe instinctively pulled the door open and found Nathan Prescott, the one she was supposed to meet, holding a gun, stepping around the restroom and rambling in disorder. On the floor there was a small brunette lying on the floor motionless and bleeding.

It took a few fractions of a second for Chloe to recognize the face of the girl lying on the floor. "Max!" she cried aloud. Another few fractions of a second later she realized who was responsible for her childhood friend's condition.

"You fucking bastard!" Chloe raged, as she leapt to the disoriented young man and smashed his head against the mirror. Nathan Prescott fell on the floor under the sinks. Chloe kicked the gun away from him and kneeled at the chestnut haired girl.

"Max!" Chloe tried to shake the brunette to no avail. She felt her neck with her fingers but there was no pulse and she was no longer breathing. The look on the small brunette's face was serene, almost happy.

"Goddammit, Max! Don't you dare to leave me like this!" Chloe turned the smaller girl on her back and pressed her lips firmly against hers. She exhaled strongly two times to fill Max's lungs with air and moved over her chest to start the compression. "One, two, three..." she began counting.

"What is going on here?" Chloe heard a man's voice to ask firmly at the door. It was her stepfather, or step-prick as she preferred to call him, David Madsen who was the head of the security at the Blackwell Academy. "Chloe?" David said as he recognized his stepdaughter.

"Dave, call an ambulance! He shot my friend!" Chloe said frantically, not discontinuing on the compression.

David Madsen secured the pistol that was on the floor and grabbed his phone. "This is security officer David Madsen. There's been a shooting at the Blackwell Academy. One casualty. We need a paramedic unit fast..."

The rest of David's words just faded away, as Chloe kept on pressing her friend's chest. "Come on, Max! I can't lose you too!" She pressed her lips again against Max's and made two long exhales. "Don't give up, Maxaroni!" Chloe moved again over Max's chest and began pressing. "I'm so sorry I never called you. Just come back!"

Chloe kept on resuscitating, while David apprehended Nathan and handed him over to his colleague. The paramedics arrived and made their way to the restroom.

"Chloe, you need to step back and let the paramedics do their job," David said and put his hand on her stepdaughter's shoulder. The punk brushed the hand angrily off and continued pressing. David had no choice than to firmly wrap his arms around his stepdaughter and forcefully drag the kicking and screaming girl away to make room for the paramedics.

"No, you fucking prick! Let go of me! I need to be with Max!" Chloe bellowed to her stepfather, trying to writhe herself free.

"You did well, Chloe," David tried to calm her. "Now let the paramedics do their job."

Chloe calmed down a bit and watched the paramedics do their best to resuscitate the lifeless brunette. The other paramedic intubated her and began to pump air into her lungs using a bellows while the other cut open her shirt and placed defib pads on her chest.

"Ok, clear!" the paramedic shouted and pressed a button on the defibrillator. The brunette's body jolted from the current. Apart from the single spike from the defibrillator, the line on the heart rate monitor stayed flat. He applied more power to the defibrillator. "Clear!" Again the body jolted, but there was no change in the monitor. He tried once more with more power but when the line stayed flat, he changed to manual compression.

After what felt like an eternity to Chloe, the paramedics exchanged glances and stopped the resuscitation. "Time of death, 10:48," one of them announced. The other paramedic removed the bellows from the tube that was protruding from the dead brunette's mouth. They backed away from the body and the other one left the room to retrieve a body bag.

"No!" Chloe broke herself loose from her stepfather's grip and kneeled again next to her dead friend's body. She lifted Max on her lap and carefully covered the exposed chest by zipping up the blood-soaked hoodie. Chloe lifted Max's still warm forehead against her cheek and sobbed silently, tears running first down her own face and then on the brunette's. "Please don't leave me," she whispered.

The paramedic returned with the body bag. David held him back. "Just give her a minute," he said quietly.

Chloe sat on the floor and held her friend gently on her lap quietly for a few minutes. Only a few brief sobs broke the silence that had landed in the restroom and the hallway.

"Chloe, please," David said, kneeling over to the grieving bluenette. "It's time." The punk's eyes narrowed briefly but then she sighed and loosened her grip. The paramedics set the body bag next to them and unzip it. The lifted the small girl gently from Chloe's lap and laid her on the open bag. One of them then slowly closed the bag, before they lifted it on the gurney and pushed it away.

Chloe remained sitting on the puddle of blood, as the people dispersed away from the scene. One single thought filled the punk's mind. _Why?_

* * *

Kate Marsh watched among the other spectators, as the small brunette's body was placed in a body bag and pushed away on a gurney. She had heard the gunshot and run to the restroom like all the others. She had gasped in shock, when she had recognized the girl who had been lying on the restroom floor, bleeding to death.

Maxine Caulfield had been one of the few people in this school that Kate had considered a friend. She had been constantly bullied because of her faith, especially by the members of the Vortex Club. Max had been one of the few that had not partaken into the bullying, most probably, because she had been a bit of an outcast herself.

The difference between her and the now deceased photographer was that Max had not tried to make an effort to blend in. The brunette had not really cared what others thought of her, or at least she hid it well. Kate, on the other hand wanted to be part of the community. That was the reason why she had gone to the Vortex Club party. That had been a decision that had turned her life in shambles.

All Kate could remember about the party, was that she had had one glass of wine. After that, everything had been a complete blackout until the moment that Nathan Prescott had brought her to the dorm.

The next day the events of last night had unraveled to Kate in all of its gruesomeness. According to eyewitnesses, she had been seen dancing on the tables and making out with several people. Worst of all, a video of her exploits was uploaded into the social networks, where it was now spreading like a virus. Also her family had become aware of the video and reprimanded her. Only her father and sisters had been supportive towards her in the midst all the guilt and shame.

Kate couldn't grasp the idea that Max was dead. It had been just a few moments earlier, when they had exchanged a few words with her at Mr. Jefferson's class. She could've never imagined that it would be the last time she saw her alive. Max had said how she missed their weekly tea sessions. There would be no opportunities for those any longer. Not that it mattered. Not that anything mattered any more.

* * *

Chloe sat in David's office and was smoking. Her stepfather was sitting on the opposite side of the desk. She could see from David's eyes that he didn't approve her unhealthy habit and she was well aware that smoking was strictly forbidden in the school premises. Maybe because of the situation David was willing to let it slide.

"Look, Chloe," David said to his stepdaughter. "You're going to have to talk to the police anyway. I can't help you with them, if I don't know exactly what happened. Knowing your relationship with the Arcadia Bay Police Department, you're going to need all the help you can get."

Chloe just stared into the distance. She was still trying to process the fact that her childhood friend was now lying in a body bag at the Arcadia Bay Hospital. When she had heard that Max had returned to Arcadia Bay, she had many times contemplated about calling her but every time her pride had prevented that.

Chloe had felt hurt and abandoned, when Max had suddenly moved to Seattle with her parents right after Chloe's father, William had died. She had wanted Max to come crawling back to her. Now there would be no chance for either.

"Chloe, I need to know why you were at the school premises," David said.

Chloe thought about a plausible explanation for her being in a place, where she basically was a persona non grata. After a moment's hesitation she decided to come clean though. _For Max._

"I was going to meet Nathan Prescott," Chloe said eventually.

"Why did you need to meet with Nathan?"

"The bastard drugged me the other night and did all kinds of shit to me," Chloe explained. "I also know that he's dealing drugs to other students, so I was gonna blackmail him."

David looked at Chloe incredulously. "Of all the stupid ideas..."

"Hey, you asked!" Chloe retorted. "And I'm all right, thanks for asking!"

"Well, obviously you can't tell the police that you were going to extort him," David said. "Just tell them that you were going to confront him about it."

"Look, if I had known Nathan was so messed up that he'd bring a gun, I would've never suggested to meet him," Chloe said.

David closed his eyes and rested his forehead against his thumbs. "You do realize that your friend saved your life, don't you? Without her, it would be you in that body bag."

Chloe hadn't thought about that, until now. It was true. Max had saved her life by being there then. Chloe also realized that Max would be alive, if she had not come up with the idea to blackmail Nathan.

"Oh my god! Max is dead because of me!" she said. "It's all my fault!"

"Chloe, listen to me," David tried to calm his stepdaughter. "While the idea of trying to blackmail Nathan Prescott was stupid and irresponsible, in the end it was him that pulled the trigger on Max. I've been following him for months because I was suspecting him of trafficking. I had noticed that he had become very unstable after last spring. The Prescotts pretty much own this school so without any solid evidence I couldn't do anything." He leaned back on his chair and sighed. "My point is that sooner or later this would have happened no matter what, and anyone could've been the victim."

"But it happened now, and Max is the victim!" Chloe shouted.

"I..." David began but was interrupted, when his phone rang.

"David Madsen... ...Yeah... ...You sure? ...I understand... ...Thanks for calling!" David ended the call. "It was Andy Berry. They've found Rachel Amber."

"They've found Rachel?" Chloe lifted her eyebrows. "Is she all right?"

"Chloe, Rachel is dead," David said with a dreary voice. "Nathan confessed having overdosed her and buried her at the old junkyard. I'm sorry, Chloe."

"Rachel, dead?" Chloe whispered. At some level, she had known it but she had kept up hope that she would turn up in L.A. or something, like they had planned together.

"This isn't happening! First Max, then Rachel!" Chloe began to ramble frantically. "David, please tell me that this is just a bad dream! Ohmygodohmygodohmygod..." the punk curled into a fetal position on her chair and broke into tears.

David stood up and walked to his stepdaughter. He placed his hand on her shoulder but Chloe just twitched.

"Let me be!" Chloe snapped. "Please, just leave me alone."

"Sure, take your time," David stepped back and walked to the door. "I'll be right outside, if you need me." He almost closed the door behind him but he stopped and turned around. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry I couldn't protect you or Max from Nathan."

Chloe didn't see how her stepfather closed the door behind him. With Max and Rachel dead, there was little to carry on for. Her mother, Joyce had moved on after William's death, when she had met David. William had always been closer to Chloe than Joyce but Joyce's remarriage had alienated Chloe from her even more. With David, Chloe had been at odds most of the time. She owed a debt to Frank Bowers that she possibly couldn't pay. She was a high school drop-out and her future didn't look too bright. She was a loser with a capital 'L'. No one would miss her sorry punk ass, if she died.

* * *

Kate sat on the bench outside the dormitory and stared into the distance. She had spent the last night praying and asking for guidance, but in the morning she had felt as lost and hopeless as she had in the evening.

Kate had watched the viral video of her. When she had reached the end of it, she just couldn't see a way she could face her family any more. Kate also couldn't see how she could continue her studies in Blackwell. How could anyone possibly see her as anything other than a wanton slut.

The shame and guilt was so overwhelming that Kate just wished that she would stop feeling altogether. She looked up to the roof of the tower that was on top of the dormitory entrance. Yes, that would give people something to talk about and post pictures on the internet. She was already all over the web. Why not give people more of the same; that's what they obviously wanted. Maybe someone would then care about her feelings too.

* * *

A cool autumn night breeze swept through the platform roof of the Prescott Dormitory. The sky was clear but it was still quite dark as it was only two days after new moon. Only a thin waxing crescent was dimly shining in the sky. Chloe had always loved staying up late and watching the night sky with all of its stars. Thanks to step-prick's key ring, she could enjoy it here at the top of the dormitory. Chloe let her eyes enjoy the divine view as she took a long drag from her joint and then slowly blew it away. She grabbed a bottle of beer and raised it towards the sky. "To you, Max and Rachel! I'll be joining you soon!" she said and took a long swig.

With the joint slowly blazing between her lips, Chloe pulled a revolver from the waist of her jeans. She had stolen it earlier from David's gun cabinet at home. She checked that all the chambers in the cylinder contained a cartridge, before she swung the cylinder back in place and cocked the hammer. Chloe took one more drag from the joint and tossed it away. She slowly raised the barrel against her temple and put her index finger on the trigger.

Just as Chloe was about to pull the trigger, the door to the roof opened and she saw a girl in her pajamas to step on the roof. Even though it was dark, she recognized the trademark bun of Kate Marsh, who walked slowly towards the edge of the roof.

Chloe lowered her revolver as the petite girl climbed on the edge of the roof. _She's gonna jump,_ Chloe thought as she stood up. She cleared her throat, startling the girl slightly and making her turn.

"C-Chloe? W-what are you doing here?" she asked, when she recognized the punk.

"Apparently the same thing you are, Kate," Chloe answered and raised her gun.

"Don't come any closer!" the blonde exclaimed. "I will jump if you do."

"Hey, don't let me stop you," Chloe spread her arms. "I'll just see you on your way and then I'm gonna put a bullet in my head."

Kate hesitated for a moment, before she opened her mouth. "May I ask you why you're going to put a bullet in your head?"

"My childhood friend was killed and another friend was found dead today," Chloe said. "Both were killed by the same person. What about you?"

"I made the biggest mistake of my life by going to a Vortex club party and now my life is in ruins," Kate answered.

"Hella partying on that video!" Chloe's expression brightened up. "Change of clothes and you'd be ready for the mosh pit!"

"Oh that darned video!" the smaller girl said. "I wish I could turn back time so that I'd never gone to that party!"

That remark made Chloe sigh. "Yeah, kinda wish I could turn it back too. Maybe my friends would still be alive then."

"I lost a friend too, today," Kate said.

Chloe lifted your eyebrow. "You mean Max was your friend?"

"Yes, does that surprise you?"

"No, not at all," Chloe said and grinned.

"I saw you today in the restroom," Kate said. "You two must've been close."

"Yeah, we were, back when we were kids," Chloe said. "We lost touch, when Max moved to Seattle. You know, today was the first time I saw her after that. I saw her, when she-, when she..." The punk's voice fade away and she burst into tears.

Kate stepped down from the roof edge and took the crying bluenette into her embrace. Chloe was first taken aback about the sudden expression of sympathy, but for some reason the warmth offered by the smaller girl was so soothing that she accepted it and wrapped her own arms around her in return.

They stood there, holding each other for a while. Finally Chloe eased up on her grip and slowly stepped back. "Sorry 'bout that. I don't usually get this mushy."

"I think we both needed it," Kate said.

"So, about that video, I take that you weren't quite yourself on it?"

"Actually I can't remember anything of it," Kate said. "I can vaguely remember that Nathan Prescott promised to take me to a hospital but after that it's all dark until I woke up outside my dorm room and I felt gross."

"Nathan Prescott?" Chloe lifted her eyebrows again.

"Yes, why so?"

"That bastard drugged me and I bet he drugged you too," Chloe explained. "Dude, whatever happened on that video, you didn't do it voluntarily. I'd go and talked to the cops about it, rather than jump from the roof."

"Y-you think so?"

"Hella yeah!" Chloe said. "If you want, we can talk to my step-pr-, stepfather tomorrow. He can take it forward."

"So, does this mean that you won't be putting a bullet in your head tonight?" Kate asked.

Chloe looked at the revolver in her hand. She carefully un-cocked the hammer and pushed the gun back into the waist of her jeans. "No, I guess not. Unless you're still gonna jump off this roof."

"I guess I'll pass it too," Kate said. "You want to join me for a cup of tea in my room?"

Chloe contemplated the offer. Kate was after all from a religious family and her values were pretty much at the opposite end of the spectrum from where she stood, but for some reason she felt some kind of protectiveness over the bun-haired girl.

"Sure, why not."

**To be continued...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Tuesday**

Chloe stood behind the door of room 219. The hallway was dim as most of the tenants in the girl's wing of the Prescott Dormitory were still sleeping. A dim light gleamed from the opening of Kate Marsh's door a few doors down. It was still few hours until dawn. Someone had written 'Requiem et pace, Max' on the slate next to the door.

The punk had spent the last few hours with Kate Marsh, drinking tea and talking, mostly about their deceased friend. Chloe had determined from the decoration of the room that Kate was clearly a devout Christian. In fact, the religious posters and the related memorabilia had felt a bit creepy at first but the smaller girl's kindness and altruism had put her at ease.

Chloe dug out the keyring she had and chose the master key to the dormitory. She put the key into the lock and opened the door that lead into Max Caulfield's room. She took a deep breath before stepping in.

The first thing Chloe noticed was the huge montage of photos on one wall above Max's bed. She eyed the collection of Polaroid photos and could see that her late friend really had a knack for photography. On the bed there was a scruffy teddy bear, which Chloe immediately recognized. She took the teddy bear in her hands and smiled. _Oh, Maxaroni, you never got around to fix that missing eye, did you?_ The scent on the teddy bear immediately brought memories of the ponytail brunette into her mind.

By the end of the bed there was a chest of drawers. Chloe pulled one of them open and inside found a photo. It was of Max and Chloe, in pirate outfits. She could remember the day when the photo was taken like it was yesterday. Playing pirates had always been their favorite game. Chloe had been the pirate captain and Max her loyal first mate.

On top of the drawers there was a stereo system. On a whim, she turned the stereo on. 'Obstacles' by Syd Matters started playing. The punk sat down on the bed and squeezed the teddy bear on her lap.

_...we play hide and seek in waterfalls, we were younger, we were younger..._

Tears trickled slowly down on Chloe's cheeks as the music played. She looked again at the picture in her hand. _Those were the days, eh Maximus?_ She opened her jacket pocket and slid the photo inside.

While sitting, the punk scanned the rest of the room. On the desk, there was a laptop computer. On the opposite wall there was a couch and some posters hanging above it. An acoustic guitar was resting against the couch. _So you learned to play the guitar like you said you would,_ Chloe thought, smiling.

A plant that looked like it was in desperate need of water was in the corner. Chloe stood up, took the water bottle from the desk and poured its contents in the soil. She looked at the plant for a moment and picked it up. _Max wouldn't want you to wither._

With the plant in her hands, Chloe cast a final glance at her dead friend's room, before turning off the lights and closing the door behind her.

* * *

Kate was sitting on her bed. She looked at the two empty tea cups and the empty plate that had had a stack of biscuits on it. By the time she had finished one biscuit, the blue haired punk, who had joined her for a late night tea, had devoured the rest.

Kate thought back her history with Chloe Price. Chloe had been a sophomore at Blackwell Academy, when Kate had started her freshman year there. Already back then, the punk had been rebellious, being at odds with the faculty and staff. Kate would've otherwise only known the punk only by name and reputation, had they not ended up in the same algebra study group. Contrary to what her appearance and attitude might have suggested Chloe Price was very much into sciences, especially mathematics and physics. Even though they didn't spent time together outside the study group, Kate and Chloe would always greet each other, when they met.

Kate had made notice that Chloe had mostly hung around with Rachel Amber. Even after Chloe had been expelled in the beginning of her junior year, she could be still seen in the girls' dormitory, either leaving from or arriving to Rachel's room. Then Rachel had gone missing last spring and Chloe had stopped visiting the dormitory, save for a few times to put up missing person posters of Rachel.

Kate could've never have imagined that Max could've been best friends Chloe. The introvert hipster couldn't be more apart from the brash punk girl. Chloe had told her however, that they had known each other, when they were kids. Max had then moved to Seattle and they had lost contact. Apparently they had not parted in best of terms. Kate could sense that the punk was troubled by the issue but she didn't feel eligible to question further.

Kate was still in emotional turmoil. Shame and guilt of her exploits at the Vortex Club party was still glooming in the depths of her mind. This was augmented by a different guilt. She felt remorse about attempting something that her faith considered a cardinal sin. Kate felt guilt, but she was also in conflict. She considered herself a devout Christian but sometimes she had a hard time understanding, how others that called themselves devout Christians, looked down to those that didn't fit to their standards of Christianity. Those people also seemed to associate Christianity to how respected position they held in their society and go to extremes to maintain an image required to uphold that position. Her aunt, and to some extent her mother belonged to those people. Kate could imagine that if it was in Auntie Marsh's power, she'd disown Kate from the Marsh family altogether.

Kate herself felt that faith was a personal matter and that everyone was free to practice or not to practice their faith or spirituality the way it best suited them, as long as no one else was hurt or it didn't come at someone else's expense. Practically, an application of 'love thy fellow man as thou lovest thyself'.

On this gloomy moment, Kate's could seek consolation from the fact that her father and sisters were still supportive towards her and loved her no matter what. Also Chloe's claim that Kate's exploits may have not been voluntary offered some console.

Just then, the door was opened and the punk girl pushed he head in.

"Uhm, you want me to stay overnight?" Chloe asked. "I can stay, if you wish."

The smaller girl managed a faint smile. "No thank you," she answered, "unless you don't want to be alone."

"Nah, I'm good," the punk said. "Besides, I think I could use some time to myself. Can I trust that you don't go onto that roof again?"

"I won't," Kate assured. "If Nathan did in fact drug me, it changes a lot of things."

"Ok, I'll stop by first thing in the morning and we'll talk to David." Chloe was about to excuse herself but she stopped midway. "You wanna join me for breakfast after that?"

The spontaneous suggestion took Kate by surprise. At the study group sessions, the punk girl had always been cordial towards her but otherwise she had shown no interest in spending time with her. Not that she would have had any specific urge to do so herself, either.

"Look, it's ok, if you don't want to come…" Chloe started as she saw that the smaller girl was hesitating.

"No, no, I'd like to come," Kate interrupted her.

"Uh, ok. I'll see you in the morning, then," Chloe said, not being able to hide the surprise in her voice. "Imma take this plant home so that it doesn't wither." She flashed the plant through the opening and closed the door behind her.

Kate stood up and walked to the window. She could see how the punk girl made her way through the courtyard, trying to avoid being seen. A moment later Kate heard how the engine of a truck coughed itself alive and how the rough sound receded as the truck drove away.

Kate let out a deep yawn. She hadn't realized until now how tired she actually was. The day had been exhausting in many ways and it had stretched long. She pulled the cover of her bed and lay down, hoping to get at least a few hours of sleep.

* * *

The alarm in Chloe's mobile phone went off at 8 a.m. She opened one eyelid and grumbled as she tried to reach for her phone with her hand, before realizing that she had intentionally left the phone at her desk so that she wouldn't just turn the alarm off and continue sleeping.

 _Oh, for fuck's sake!_ Chloe stood up and shivered at the cool air. She wrapped a duvet around herself and walked to the desk to turn the alarm off. She looked out the window. The sky was mostly clear. Arcadia Bay would be treated with another beautiful autumn day. Chloe's expression brightened up for a moment but then she remembered what had happened and the misery took over. She still couldn't grasp the thought that yesterday she had almost single-handedly lost her childhood friend and her girlfriend, or at least she liked to think Rachel as her girlfriend. Chloe had always been open about her feelings towards Rachel but she had never been quite sure, if the other girl felt the same way about her. Sure, they'd had sex together and had great plans about their future but still, a feeling of doubt about Rachel's commitment had lingered in the back of Chloe's head.

Then there was Max. The guilt of being partly responsible of her childhood friend's demise was eating Chloe alive. She was also still puzzled by the brunette's expression, when she had went to her. The serene smile on Max's face was nothing one would expect to see on a gunshot victim. It was like she had achieved something important, like she had known...

 _Yeah, and pigs fly too!_ The punk brushed the thought away. There wasn't a slightest chance that Max could've known that Chloe was going to meet Nathan in the restroom just then. The brunette just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and Chloe would have to live with the consequences. _Damn you, Max!_

After having applied a fresh layer of deodorant into her armpits, Chloe got dressed up and walked downstairs. There was no one in the kitchen or living room. Both her mother and step-douche had already left for work. Since Chloe was going to have breakfast later over at the Two Whales, she just poured a glass full of orange juice and emptied it with a few long swigs.

Chloe stepped outside and locked the door behind her. Her truck stood at the driveway. The original beige paint job of the battered Chevrolet C/K was barely visible under the layers of dirt and rust. Technically, it was in a reasonably good condition. Chloe had borrowed money from Frank Bowers for the repairs of the truck. That, added to her weed tab, made her debt to Frank 3,000 dollars. Chloe had never intended to pay Frank back and instead leave Arcadia Bay with Rachel, but Rachel's disappearance had changed it all. Frank had set the deadline for Chloe to pay up this Friday. Blackmailing the money from Nathan had been her last resort, but that plan had backfired in the worst kind of way. Now, she couldn't care less whether she would be able to pay up or not.

Chloe got behind the wheel and turned the ignition. The V6 engine coughed itself to life and soon settled on idle. Chloe turned on the radio. The local station was playing 'Karma Police' by Radiohead. The melancholic tone of the song redeemed a deep sigh from the blunette's lips. For a moment, she considered tuning to another station but ultimately decided to let it be. She backed down on the road and drove off.

* * *

Kate stepped out on the courtyard of the dormitory. The cool autumn morning air made her shiver. It also shook her awake from her semi-dormant state. After only five hours of sleep, she couldn't quite comprehend how she had managed to wake up, when her alarm went off, and to go through the morning activities. Just as Kate had got dressed up, she had got a message from Chloe that she was on her way. She would meet her at the front of the main building and they would go together to talk with David Madsen. Kate was glad that Chloe would accompany her, as she found the head of the security slightly intimidating. She realized that she wasn't feeling quite as crestfallen as she was yesterday. Perhaps the discussion with Chloe's stepfather would lead to an explanation to her behavior in the party.

When Kate stepped to the passageway leading to the main courtyard, she noticed that there was an unusually high number of people packed in the passageway and more was coming in from the main courtyard. She made her way to the main courtyard entrance, where she saw Stella Hill.

"Stella, what's going on?" Kate asked, as she peeked to the courtyard, where the security personnel were steering the people away from the main building entrance. She saw a couple of ABPD patrol vehicles parked at the bottom of the stairs. There were a few police officers standing at the stairs that lead to the main entrance. They were wearing bulletproof vests and they were armed.

"Oh, hi Kate!" Stella greeted the petite blonde. "I'm not sure but based on what I heard, Mr. Jefferson has locked himself in the art class and he's holding Taylor Christensen as hostage."

"What! Are you serious?" Kate blurted in shock. Why would Mr. Jefferson lock himself up and take someone hostage, she asked herself. He was always so nice and laid back, although he had been a little uptight on the last few days.

"That's what I heard," Stella answered. "The police had apparently arrived to arrest Mr. Jefferson, when he had all of a sudden pulled a gun, grabbed Taylor and retreated with her into the classroom."

"Oh dear!" Kate exclaimed "Why do they want to arrest Mr. Jefferson?"

"There's a rumor that Nathan and Mr. Jefferson have been doing some shady stuff together. Apparently Nathan has spilled the beans on Jefferson and that's why the cops came to arrest him," Stella explained, a slight disbelief in her voice. "It's a shame, though, that he grabbed Taylor instead of the Queen Bee for his shield."

Stella's remark made Kate scan for the owner of the title in the crowd, finding her in no time. Victoria Chase, the Queen Bee of Blackwell and some other titles that Kate's upbringing didn't consider appropriate to mention, was standing in the front with her arms crossed and a shocked expression on her face. The normal smugness and self-assuredness of the tall blonde was only a faint memory. Victoria Chase looked just like any other frightened teenager. One might have said she looked humane.

"Hey Kate, what's going on?" Chloe asked as she made her way through the crowd towards the two girls.

"Hi Chloe!" Kate waved to the taller girl. "It seems that our photography teacher has taken one of the students hostage, when the police came to arrest him."

"Dude, that's hella hardcore!" the punk remarked. "What's he done?"

Kate explained the other girl what she knew so far. She made notice how the punk's expression became serious, when she heard that the teacher was possibly working together with Nathan Prescott.

The three girls followed with anticipation as the security personnel isolated the courtyard and the police officers seemed to get ready to enter the building. Apparently the negotiations had led nowhere. An ambulance had arrived at the scene with reinforcements from the State Troopers. Lieutenant Rossi gave the final instructions to the team, before they entered the building.

For what felt like an eternity, nothing seemed to happen. Then all of a sudden, several shots were exchanged, accompanied by screams from within and outside of the building, followed by silence. A few moments later, one of the police officers pushed the door open and waved the paramedics in. A short murmur ran through the crowd as the paramedics ran in. A distant sound of a siren indicated that another paramedic unit was en route to the scene.

One of the paramedics returned shortly with one of the police officers to retrieve the gurney from the ambulance.

"Oh, good Lord!" Kate gasped. "I hope Taylor is all right."

The other paramedic unit arrived at the scene. The paramedics took their gurney from the back and rushed in with it. The whole crowd seemed to hold their breath, when they waited for someone to come out. Suddenly, the doors slammed open and the first paramedic team came out. Kate could make out that the person they were carrying was Taylor Christensen, who lay unconscious on the gurney. Everyone gasped in shock, when they saw the girl being carried to the ambulance.

Kate cast another glance at Victoria, who had lost the last remains of her composure and collapsed to the ground. Courtney had knelt next to the broken down blonde, trying to support her to her best ability. Despite all the bullying Kate had experienced from Victoria, she couldn't help but feel compassion towards her.

"Well, I could've never imagined that the Queen of Blackhell was capable of showing emotions," Chloe sneered.

"Chloe Price, for a person who has just lost two of her closest friends, you seem to be taking quite a lot of joy out of other person's despair," Kate said disapprovingly.

"Hey, it's Victoria we're talking about," Chloe defended herself. "I mean she's probably the one that uploaded that video of you in the web."

"Do you think I haven't thought of that?" the smaller girl asked sternly. "And do you really think I don't desire to get payback for all the wrong I've had to endure every now and then? I do, and I've had plenty of opportunities to get even." Kate took Chloe's hand into hers. "It's just that I like to think that the human kind has the potential to rise above such pettiness and be able to coexist in peace. It's not an easy task, and to get there, we need to start from ourselves."

Chloe looked at the petite blonde with amazement. Her appearance did a good job hiding the determination that Kate Marsh packed. The punk was stubborn and quick-witted but she knew which battles she wouldn't win and this was one of them. "Uh, sorry. I guess you're right," she relented.

The discussion was interrupted by another gasp in the crowd. The other paramedic team exited the building. On the gurney lay a body bag, indicating that there had been a casualty. Since all the police officers that had charged in, appeared to be accounted-for, it could only mean that the body being carried away belonged to Mark Jefferson. Whatever his wrong-doing was, Kate would have preferred to see him face justice rather than die.

The first ambulance drove away, sirens screaming, towards the hospital. The other ambulance followed silently a moment later. Seeing that the situation was over, the people began to scatter. The classes were cancelled for the day, so most people headed towards the dormitory. Some remained at the main courtyard and the rest headed to town.

"So, you still wanna join me for breakfast?" Chloe asked. "Looks like step-douche is too busy at the moment, so we have to take a rain check on him."

"I don't know if I still have an appetite after all this but sure, I'll join you," Kate answered.

* * *

Chloe started her truck and backed away from the parking space. She looked at the small blonde sitting on the passenger's seat, looking slightly uncomfortable among the clutter, consisting of empty chip bags, beverage cans and other trash.

"Uh, sorry about the mess," the punk said. "I usually don't have passengers."

"It's all right," Kate assured. "It's been a while since I've last been at Two Whales. Is your mother still working there?"

"Yup, where else?" Chloe said. Her mother had been cooking and waiting at the Two Whales diner for as long as Chloe could remember. She remembered Joyce having remarked half-jokingly on several occasions that they will probably have to carry her out dead cold from that place. Chloe hoped, though that her mother would have the opportunity to retire, while she was still in good health and pursue whatever dreams she might still have.

Five minutes later, Chloe parked the truck at the parking lot beside the Two Whales diner. Both girls stepped out of the truck and walked towards the entrance. Chloe opened the door and let Kate in, before stepping inside. The diner was relatively quiet, with half a dozen patrons occupying the stand and some of the booths. Chloe spotted her mother behind the counter. She could tell from the older woman's slightly puffy eyes that she had heard the news.

"Chloe, honey!" Joyce Madsen exclaimed, when she saw her daughter standing at the entrance. A few quick steps later, she had enclosed her daughter into a tight embrace.

"Oh good heavens!" Joyce said, barely holding together. "I'm so sorry about Maxine and Rachel, honey!"

"Me too, Mom, me too," Chloe said quietly. "How are you holding up?"

"I've been crying through the night," Joyce said and wiped her eye. "Max was like a daughter to me."

Joyce's remark loosened a slight resentment out of the bluenette. "Well, I'm sorry it had to be Max instead of me."

The older woman's eyes and lips narrowed a fraction. "Chloe Elizabeth Price, I know that you are upset, so I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."

Chloe didn't say anything. She'd regretted her blurt the same moment the words came out of her mouth. Her expression didn't reveal any of it, though.

"Well, if it isn't lil' Katie Marsh!" Joyce let out a heartfelt smile and took the smaller girl in tight embrace. "It feels like ages since the last time I've seen you."

"Nice to see you too, Mrs. Madsen," Kate responded.

"Just call me Joyce, hon," the older woman grinned. "Mrs. Madsen is my mother-in law."

"Sure, Joyce." Kate smiled back.

"How are your folks?"

"They're fine, thanks for asking."

"Take a seat," Joyce pointed at the free booths. "I'll come to take your orders in a moment."

Chloe walked to her usual booth and swung her on the seat. Kate sat on the opposing seat. She cast a disapproving glance at the punk girl.

"Don't give me that look!" the punk said with a sulky tone. "My relationship with Mom has never been the easiest. She and Max always got along better than I did. I think Mom sees Max as the daughter she never got, because I never fit that bill."

"Sounds like you're a bit jealous to Max," Kate remarked, letting her expression to soften.

"Well, maybe I am," Chloe admitted. "She had a perfect life with loving parents and a world full of possibilities. And obviously she was too busy with her new life in Seattle to bother about keeping in touch with her best friend."

"That's where you got it wrong!" Kate said sternly. "I didn't get to know Max for a long time but she did confide in me about her childhood friend that she had lost touch with and who she was too afraid to contact in the fear that she might reject her. I didn't know who she meant, until our discussion last night."

Chloe didn't say anything but a slight blush and a hint of frown on her brows gave away that the smaller girl's words hit their target.

"I don't know what went down between you two, when your father died but Max is hardly the one to blame for the lack of communication between you two," Kate continued.

"That's right! You don't know!" the punk retorted and stood up. "I don't have to listen to your ranting! Enjoy your breakfast!" With that she walked out of the restaurant.

* * *

Kate watched abashedly how Chloe stepped into her truck and drove away.

"I'm sorry for Chloe, honey," Joyce said, when she came to the booth. "She's never been good at admitting that she might be at fault."

"It's okay, Joyce," Kate said. "I wasn't exactly being diplomatic with her."

"Oh, don't worry about that," the older woman said calmingly. "I wish people would speak their mind to Chloe a lot more often. How is it that you're with Chloe, by the way? You don't exactly look like that you mingle in the same circles."

"We used to be in the same study group," Kate explained. "It was… the tragic event yesterday that got us to know each other better, though."

"Oh, I see," Joyce said quietly. "Were you and Max close?"

"She was one of the few friends I had at Blackwell," the young woman said wistfully.

"I'm sorry for your loss, honey." The older woman filled the mug in front of Kate with coffee. "What'll you be having? It's on the house."

"Oh, I couldn't possibly-" Kate begun but Joyce raised her hand.

"Nonsense! A friend of Chloe and Max is a friend of mine. Just name your grub."

"Well then, I'd love some eggs and toast, please," Kate said.

"Coming right up!" Joyce walked to the kitchen.

Kate took a sip from her coffee. A part of her regretted about upsetting Chloe with her remark, another part wanted to be angry to her for shutting Max out. Chloe was right about not knowing the whole story behind Max and Chloe's separation. She'd need to hear Chloe's side of it.

Suddenly, Kate's phone rang. She dug it out of her pocket and answered.

"Good morning, Ms. Marsh! This is Officer Anderson Berry of the Arcadia Bay Police Department. I hope I'm not disturbing you?" the voice on the other end asked.

"Not at all," Kate answered. "I'm waiting for my breakfast to be served. How can I help you, officer?"

"Would it be possible for you to drop by at the police station at your convenience today? We'd like to ask you some questions regarding the night of the Vortex Club party."

Kate took a deep breath. _Oh my God!_ "What about it?" she asked a concern in her voice.

"I'd rather not discuss it over the phone," Officer Berry said.

"All right, I can be there within an hour," she answered.

"Good! Talk to you then," the officer said and ended the call.

Kate stared at her phone. There could be only two reasons the police wanted to question her about that dreadful night and she didn't like either of them.

"What's wrong, honey? You look pale as a ghost," Joyce said to her as she laid a plate full of toast and eggs on the table.

"Uh, it's nothing," Kate said. "I just didn't sleep very well last night." Technically, it wasn't lie as she did sleep only few hours.

"Well, bon appetit!" The older woman excused herself.

Kate looked at the plate full of food in front of her. Whatever appetite she had had, there definitely wasn't any left after the phone call. Not wanting to hurt Chloe's mother's feelings, she forced herself to eat two slices of toast topped with a fried egg.

Having finished, Kate stood up and left a few dollars tip on the table. She thanked Joyce for the breakfast and exited the diner. Hesitantly, Kate started walking towards the police station.

* * *

The American Rust was an old junkyard at the outskirts of Arcadia Bay. A final resting place for vehicles and household appliances. It was also Chloe's 'home away from hell', her personal retreat. She'd spent many days and nights here with Rachel. Those were the rare good moments in her life since her father had died and Max moved to Seattle. Now she was sitting on a hood of an old banger, a joint in her one hand and a bottle of beer in the other. In front of her was an opening isolated by police tape. This was the spot, where Rachel's body had been found. According to the rumors, Rachel had been buried here since last spring, pretty much right after her disappearance.

Chloe took a long drag from her joint and exhaled it slowly, as she thought the countless times she had been walking on that exact spot, not realizing that the girl she had loved was laying just inches below. She wiped a trickle of tears off her face and took a swig from her beer. She was angry. Angry at her father for dying, angry at Max for not being there for her, angry at Nathan and Jefferson for killing Rachel, angry at her mother for marrying that sorry excuse for a stepfather, angry at Kate for not being supportive, angry at the whole fucking world, but most of all, she was angry at herself.

Kate had hit a sore spot with her remark. When Chloe's father had died, she had felt enormous pain and anger, and she had taken it all out on Max, when the brunette had told her that she would move to Seattle. Even though Chloe had known that it wasn't up to Max, whether she left or stayed, it had not mattered. If Max couldn't be there for her, when she needed, she might as well go to hell. Those had been the last words she had said to her best friend. The brunette had left her friend's house in tears, never to return. Chloe had regretted her selfishness and harsh words almost immediately, but like Max, she had been too afraid to call her in fear of rejection.

Chloe lifted the bottle on her lips to take another swig but it was empty. She tossed the bottle angrily away. The sound of breaking glass was accompanied by barking. The punk turned around to see a Pitbull with a hint of German Shepherd and its owner, a bearded man in his early thirties, wearing a leather jacket, worn out jeans and combat boots, standing behind her. Chloe frowned upon him.

"Thought I'd might find you here," the man said.

"What do you want, Frank?" the punk asked. "'Cause if you want your money, I can tell you straight up I don't have it and _frankly_ I don't give a fuck what you plan to do about it."

"I'm here to pay my respects, just like you seem to be," Frank Bowers said calmly. He was the man to go to in Arcadia Bay, if you needed a hit. He lived in his RV with his dog, Pompidou, who he had saved from his previous, abusive owner. Beneath his scruffy appearance, was a smart and violent man, when needed.

"Why would you pay respects-" Chloe started but then something caught her eye. "That's Rachel's bracelet! Where did you get it?" she asked angrily.

"From Rachel," the man said matter-of-factly. "She gave it to me."

"Why the hell would she give you her bracelet?"

Frank looked at the blue-haired girl bemusedly for a moment. "She never told you, did she?"

"Told me what?" the punk asked sternly.

"Rachel and I were an item."

Chloe looked at Frank like she had heard wrong. "You're lying!" she finally blurted.

"Why would I lie about it? Look for yourself!" Frank said and dug a picture out of his wallet. He handed it to the punk.

Chloe looked at the picture and couldn't believe her eyes. It was Rachel, posing sensually to the camera. _No, this can't be…_ Chloe knew that Rachel kept some things to herself but she could've never imagined this.

"We split up a little before she disappeared but I never stopped loving her," Frank said melancholically. "I miss her."

"Just goes to prove that everybody lies. No exceptions." Chloe returned the photo crossly. She felt betrayed, although deep inside she knew that Rachel had not been into to their relationship the same way she had.

"Which brings us to the matter of three thousand dollars you owe me," Frank said. "I take that you never had the intention to pay me back."

Chloe didn't answer. She just stared the man defiantly.

"In any other circumstance, I would've not taken this lightly but since Rachel was our mutual friend, I'm willing to let it slide and offer you an alternative way to settle your debt." Frank took a moment to let his words sink in. "You will work for it."

"If you think I'm gonna push for you, think again," the punk retorted. "I'm in enough trouble with the law as it is."

"That's not what I had in mind," Frank said. "In fact, in light of the recent development, I've decided to give up on dealing drugs."

"Just like that?" Chloe asked in disbelief.

"I have my reasons," Frank answered. When he had heard through his contacts that Nathan had killed Rachel by overdosing her, he knew that the drugs Nathan had used could've only come from him. Knowing that he was partly responsible for the death of the woman he loved had just added to his grief. The guilt had driven him to do serious self-examination and he had concluded that the best way to honor Rachel's memory was to give up his old ways and dedicate his life to something altruistic.

"So what do you want me to do?" the bluenette asked.

"I'm leaving Arcadia Bay for a few days, to collect some old debts and to get rid of my supplies," Frank explained. "You know that old farm near the town limits? I'm going to buy it and renovate it into a shelter for abandoned and abused dogs. I'm going to need an extra pair of hands in the renovations."

"You mean…"

"Help me to convert the barn into a dog shelter and we're cool," the man made his proposition. "I might even throw a few bucks for your trouble."

"I'd be free of my debt?" Chloe asked, just make sure.

"You'd be free of your debt," Frank affirmed. "Think it over. I'll return for Rachel's funeral on Friday. I want your answer then." He turned around and walked away with the dog by his side.

Chloe was still sitting on the hood. She was in a turmoil of emotions. She felt relief, anger, betrayal and sorrow, all at the same time. She didn't know any better way to process all this, so she burst into tears.

* * *

Kate returned to the dormitory. She was also in a rollercoaster of emotions, varying from relief to shock, from anger to shame. The visit to the police station had turned out to be anything but pleasant. Officer Berry had been kind and sympathetic towards her but the matters that had been discussed had been very upsetting.

The good thing was that Kate had now a plausible explanation to her behavior at the Vortex Club party. As Chloe had suspected, Nathan Prescott had indeed drugged her, so she wasn't responsible of her own actions.

The other thing, though was that, Nathan had not taken her straight back to dormitory but instead driven her to an abandoned barn, which had a bomb shelter that had been converted into a photography studio. There, Mark Jefferson, with Nathan's assistance, had tied her and taken pictures of her while keeping her sedated.

Kate had seen the pictures taken of her and had been appalled. She couldn't still remember anything about the event, even though she had seen the pictures. It meant also that she had no recollection about anything else that might have taken place during the time she had been held captive. The officer had recommended her to go to hospital first hand to have her checked up, in other words to have them perform a rape test on her. Even though Kate had not felt other than 'gross' right after the event, the thought of being a subject of physical sexual abuse made her feel nauseous. As if those appalling pictures hadn't been enough to haunt her for the years to come, now she had to live in uncertainty about her integrity.

Kate walked down the hallway of her floor towards her room, when she saw that Victoria's door was half open and she could hear sobbing from within. Her curiosity got the best of her so she walked to the open door and peeked in. Victoria was sitting on her couch and crying. Kate wasn't exactly in capacity to offer support to anyone so she intended to back away quietly. Victoria however raised her head and looked at the smaller girl with teary eyes.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude-" Kate started but the blonde reached her arm towards her.

"Please, come in," Victoria said, still sobbing. "There's something I need to tell you"

"What is it, Victoria?"

"The video about you," the blonde sniffled. "I was the one who shot it and posted it. I-, I didn't realize…" She burst into tears again.

Kate stared at the crying girl. In a normal state of mind, she would've just hugged her and told that it's all right. That's how she believed. Now, though, she realized that she was clenching her fists and biting her teeth together, and that she had to make a conscious effort not to go and slap Victoria on the face. _Lord, give me strength!_

"Why did you do it?" Kate asked, when she had managed to calm herself down a bit. "Why did you upload the video in the first place?"

"I thought you were just another religious girl, who'd gotten a taste of sinful life and couldn't handle it, which of course doesn't make it any more justified," Victoria said as she wiped tears off her cheeks. "Anyway, I've removed it and I'm sorry – for everything that you've had to go through because of this."

In a normal state of mind, Kate would've accepted the apology. "Why'd you decide to take it off?" she asked instead. "Not that it matters now, since it's gone viral."

"After what happened this morning, rumors began to circulate around campus. Apparently Mr. Jefferson and Nathan had shared some sick perversion about drugging and photographing girls, when they were defenseless," Victoria answered. "I came to realize that Nathan must've drugged you and-" the blonde had apparently not thought the whole chain of events through before as she gasped and raised her hands in front of her mouth. "Oh my god, Kate! Are you all right?"

"No, Victoria, I'm not all right," Kate said bluntly. "I just returned from the police station, where I had to look at the pictures taken of me and was told that I should go to the hospital and have myself checked up in case that those-, those bastards didn't just settle for taking pictures." The small girl could no longer keep her emotions at bay. She fell on her knees and burst into tears. "Can you imagine how it felt to watch those pictures and be told that you may have been raped? Can you?!" she cried.

"Oh, Kate!" Victoria went to the crying girl and took her into her embrace. "I'm so sorry about everything!"

Kate continued crying but she accepted the embrace. The two girls just sat on the floor and cried together for a while. Eventually, Kate managed to pull herself back together. She wiped her tears and looked at Victoria who had also managed to restore her composure.

"Victoria," the smaller girl finally said. "What you did was an awful and mean thing." she managed to pull a hint of smile to soften her words. "I appreciate though that you had the courage to come clean and offer support, when I most needed it, so I'm going to say what thought I wouldn't be able to say a moment ago: I forgive you."

"You do?" the taller blonde asked.

"Yes, Victoria, I forgive you, and thanks!"

"You're welcome, and thank you for pulling me out of my thoughts."

"How are you?" Kate asked, remembering the state she had found Victoria in.

"I'm hanging in there," the blonde said. "I returned from the hospital some time ago. They're still operating Taylor, so I came to freshen up quickly before going back."

"Is she going to be all right?"

"It's too early to tell. She'd lost an awful lot of blood," Victoria closed her eyes. "This is awful! First Max and now Taylor."

"I never would've thought you cared about what happened to Max," Kate said.

"Of course I did!" the taller blonde retorted. "What do you think I am, a heartless bitch?"

"I'm sorry. It's just the way you always treated Max," Kate said apologetically.

Victoria cleared her throat. "I do enjoy a certain reputation, which I do my best to uphold. This is strictly between you and me but I envied Max. I envied her talent and her attitude. I would've liked to know her better but now it's too late." She stood up and walked to her laptop. She picked a picture that was torn in half and handed it over to Kate. "That is Max's entry to the Everyday Heroes contest," Victoria said to her.

Kate placed the two halves together and looked at the image. It was of Max, standing back against the camera and looking at her photo montage. "Where did you find it?"

"It was on the restroom floor," Victoria said. "Apparently she had torn the picture just moments before…" Her words faded away. She turned on her laptop, which had the digital version of the picture in one piece. "I spent the most of yesterday restoring the picture after I had scanned the halves. I entered it on her behalf to the contest." She walked back to the smaller girl.

"It took me a while to understand it but it's simply brilliant. By having her back against the camera she is saying that anyone can be a hero, anytime, anywhere." The blonde gazed in the distance. "And she was. Without her, Jefferson and Nathan would still be at large and there would be no telling who would be their next victim."

"Max paid the highest possible price, though," Kate said with teary eyes.

"Maybe, we will never know." Victoria said and stood up. "Look, I probably have to head back to the hospital, but I want you to know that my door is always open for you."

Kate didn't know what to think about all this. The Queen of Blackhell had made a complete U-turn in her attitude towards the petite blonde. "I appreciate that," Kate simply said. "If you ever are in the mood for a cup of tea, just knock."

"I will," the tall blonde said smilingly.

* * *

**Chloe 10/08/2013, 7:08 p.m.: Kate, U there?**

**Chloe 10/08/2013, 7:09 p.m.: Dude I'm sorry about this morning. You were right. I drove Max away then.**

**Kate 10/08/2013, 7:11 p.m.: Why didn't you try to contact Max?**

**Chloe 10/08/2013, 7:11 p.m.: I was afraid. I feared that I had hurt her so bad so that she would reject me. Time passed. You know how it goes.**

**Kate 10/08/2013, 7:13 p.m.: I was at the police station today. You were right. Nathan had drugged me.**

**Chloe 10/08/2013, 7:14 p.m.: Dude I'm sorry to hear that. He'll get what's coming to him.**

**Kate 10/08/2013, 7:15 p.m.: There's something else too but I'd rather not discuss it over phone. Can we meet?**

**Chloe 10/08/2013, 7:17 p.m.: Sure. Can you sneak out later tonight, when I call you?**

**Kate 10/08/2013, 7:20 p.m.: Yes, I think so. TTYL :D**

**Chloe 10/08/2013, 7:21 p.m.: No emoji!**

Chloe tucked her phone into her pocket and took a drag from her cigarette. She was sitting on the bench by the lighthouse and watching how the setting sun drew a golden line in the horizon. Twilight was setting in and the first stars glimmered on the northern sky. The punk exhaled the smoke through her nostrils. The day had been so full of twists and turns that she really hadn't had time to grieve over Max. This had been their favorite spot, when they had been kids.

 _I miss you, Maximus,_ Chloe thought. _Oh, how I would have loved to come up here with you once more._ A single tear ran down on her cheek. She had cried a lot today. She wondered what was so delicate that Kate wanted to discuss with her face to face. _I guess I'll find out soon enough._

The golden line on the horizon diminished into a single bright spot, before fading away completely and giving way to darkness. Chloe threw the cigarette butt to the ground and stood up to put it out with the heel of her boot. She cast a final glance at the darkening horizon and began walking down the path.

**To be continued...**


	3. Chapter 3

**Wednesday**

Kate was lying in her bed awake. She had tried to doze off before Chloe would call her to no avail. It was partly because of what she had been told today and the uncertainty caused by that, but also partly because of the anticipation of seeing Chloe again. The latter she couldn't quite explain because she found the blue-haired punk obnoxious and inconsiderate. On the other hand, Kate could sense a certain level of vulnerability in her, which seemed to launch almost maternal instincts in the blonde.

The buzzing of her phone, accompanied by a chime drew Kate out of her thoughts. She took the phone from the nightstand and opened the messenger.

**Chloe 10/09/2013, 0:32 a.m.: By the gym.** **Bring towels!**

**Kate 10/09/2013, 0:33 a.m.: ?**

**Chloe 10/09/2013, 0:33 a.m.: You'll see.**

Kate stood up. Instead of her usual skirt and cardigan, she pulled on a pair of chinos and a denim jacket to compliment the t-shirt she was wearing. She took two fresh towels from the closet and put her sneakers on.

Kate stepped out of her room. The corridor was dark and quiet. No doors were open. Light gleamed through some of the door slots. The blonde made it quietly to downstairs and the front door. She opened it carefully and peeked out. She could hear someone rambling outside. It was Principal Wells who was sitting on the stairs of his apartment porch.

 _Darn! How am I going to make it past him?_ Kate thought chagrined. She closed the door behind her and sneaked slowly in the shadows towards the porch. Wells was still sitting on the stairs and apparently intoxicated based on the slur in his voice.

"Look at me, feeling sorry for myself when Max Caulfield's and Rachel Amber's families are in mourning…" Wells rambled to himself, holding a glass of bourbon in his hands.

Kate watched behind a bush as the principal topped up his drink from the bottle right next to him, having no intention to move from his post.

"This may well be the end of my career but at least I get to watch how the Prescotts are going to squirm their way out of this…" Wells kept rambling.

 _I'm going to need some kind of distraction,"_ Kate thought and looked around. There was a bucket by the ladders next to the dormitory entrance. She went to the bucket and picked it up. _Ok, Marsh, time for your best forward pass,_ the blonde thought, reminiscing her days as a flag football player, when she was younger. Kate took a few running steps to gain momentum and with a wide swing she threw the bucket towards the far corner of the courtyard. While the bucket was still in the air she ran towards the corner next to the porch and squatted by the bushes, just in time to hear the bucket fall jarring to the ground.

"W-what! W-who's there?" the blonde heard the principal slur. Wells stood up and staggered towards the courtyard. "S-show yourself!"

Kate saw her chance. She rose on her feet and tiptoed quickly behind the drunken principal to the passageway. A couple of minutes later she was at the gym entrance but there was no sign of Chloe. She looked around but couldn't see anyone. Kate picked up her phone and began to tap a message to the punk.

"BOOYAH!" someone exclaimed behind Kate's back and slapped her on the shoulders, startling her.

The blonde gasped and turned around to see Chloe standing behind her. "Gosh darn it, Chloe! That was not funny!" she retorted.

"Oh lighten up, Kate!" the punk chuckled. "What took you?"

"I had to get past Principal Wells," Kate said, slightly piqued, as she picked up her phone and the towels that she had dropped when Chloe had jumped on her. "This was a bad idea. I'm going back to my room." She turned towards the dormitory.

"Hey, I'm sorry," Chloe said and put her hand on the smaller girl's shoulder. "Max and I used to jump on each other all the time as kids. I just wanted to cheer you up."

Kate contemplated for a moment but turned again to face the bluenette. "S'okay. It's just that I'm really not in a mood for that kind of cheering up."

"You said you had something on your mind."

"Can we sit down somewhere?"

"Sure, but let's find a quieter spot. The rent-a-cops are patrolling the area."

They walked to a more isolated spot at the courtyard and sat down on a skirt that separated the courtyard from the parking area. Kate looked at the taller girl who pulled a cigarette from the case and lit it. Despite her scruffy and laid back appearance, the punk had a certain grace to her, even though Kate couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.

"Want one?" Chloe offered the open case to her.

"No thanks," Kate rejected. "That's a nasty habit, you know."

"So they keep telling me," Chloe said and blew smoke through her nostrils. "Ok, spill your beans."

The blonde fidgeted the corner of one of the towels. She still felt uncomfortable speaking about the matter, even though she had spontaneously opened to Victoria about it. She would've wanted to just forget about the whole thing. Speaking about it made her feel more certain that she had in fact been raped.

"I talked to the police and they told me that Nathan had confessed drugging me," Kate began. "He had taken me to Jefferson, who had tied and photographed me." She paused for a moment and sighed deep before continuing. "They told me-, told me that I may have been raped."

Chloe held her cigarette midway and stared at the smaller girl in shock, before turning her gaze away in anger and clenching her fist. Kate could see from the punk's face that what she had just heard was affecting her on a personal level. All of a sudden, Chloe's expression mellowed again. She flicked her cigarette away and extended her arms. "I'm so sorry for what you've gone through. C'mere." Kate accepted the offer and enclosed herself into the punk's embrace, letting herself cry.

"I-, I'm supposed to go to hospital to be checked up," Kate said between sobs. "I've never even been to a gynaecologist before."

"Hey, I can come with you, if you want," Chloe offered.

"Would you?"

"Sure. I've got nothing better to do."

Being held by the taller girl was soothing. It made Kate feel safe and cared, both emotions that she had been lacking on the last few days. Even the smell of nicotine and overtly applied men's deodorant didn't bother her that much.

"So, what did you have in mind?" Kate finally asked, when she pulled herself away.

"Follow me," Chloe said with a mischievous grin and stood up.

They walked to the gym hall main door, where Chloe dug out the key ring that she had again snagged from step-douche. Chloe peeked in through the door and lead the smaller girl inside the building.

"Ok, let me see if I still remember the layout right," the punk said and took a few contemplating steps forward. "Ah, yes! That's the one." She walked towards one door and picked another key from the ring. She heard a rewarding click, when she turned the key and pulled the door open.

They stepped into the pool area. The dark water was dead calm. Only the moonlight through the ceiling windows reflected from the surface. On the opposite corner were the entrances to the control room and the showers.

"I come here to a little moonlight swim occasionally," Chloe said. "Imma turn on the pool lights." She made her way towards the control room.

Kate made her way around the swimming pool towards the girls' showers and locker room. Luckily, she had left her swimming suit in her locker to dry. She opened the locker door, took the swimming suit and put it on the bench. She removed her clothing and put those into the locker, before slipping into the purple and black Speedo one piece. She took the towels with her and walked back to the pool section.

"Chloe, you want to go change into the-," Kate started but stopped with her eyes and mouth wide open, when she saw the sight in front of her.

The bluenette had just slipped out of her boxer shorts and was placing them on top of her other clothes with the tip of her toes. She was standing by the edge of the pool without a strand of clothing. Kate couldn't take her eyes off from the perfectly toned body. Chloe's limbs were lean but still muscular. A perfectly symmetric six-pack carved itself to the flat abdomen, right below a pair of round and solid breasts with barbells piercing each rose colored nipple. What was the most affixing detail, though was the light green hair covering the punk's pubic mound.

"A word of advice," Chloe said, grinning when she realized what the smaller girl was staring at. "If you dye your bush with regular hair dye, the results may not be what you're expecting."

Only then it occurred to Kate that she was still staring at the taller girl. She turned quickly away and covered her eyes. "You're-, you're-," she stammered.

"Naked?" Chloe asked with an amused tone.

"Yes!" the smaller girl exclaimed a burning red hue on her cheeks.

"Well, I didn't bring my bikinis and no way I'm going to put my clothes over wet underwear," Chloe said. "Come on, haven't you ever gone skinny dipping?"

"No!"

"Not like it's anything you haven't seen before."

"Could you just please go into the water?" Kate said, still facing away from the punk.

"Whatev's," Chloe shrugged her shoulders and dove into the water. "Come on, the water's perfect!"

Kate turned around carefully and stepped on the edge of the pool. She eased herself on the water slowly, as she didn't want to get her hair wet. The water was still slightly chilly and she felt goosebumps raising on her arms. She swam a few strokes to get the blood circulating in her body. Kate felt a hint of smile coming on the corners of her mouth. Swimming had been one of her favorite pastimes since she had come to Blackwell, until that night. After the Vortex Club party Kate had not attended the swimming classes or gone swimming by herself. She had felt too dirty to expose herself a slightest bit in front of others. She was thankful to Chloe for the unexpected swim.

"There's an otter in my water," Chloe said as she watched the smaller girl swim.

Kate couldn't help herself from catching sneak peeks of the taller girl's body through the water. She also couldn't help the guilty conscience that followed.

"Thank you, I really needed this," the blonde said to get her thoughts elsewhere.

"Just leave it to Dr. Price," the bluenette grinned.

Kate stopped swimming and turned around but she didn't see Chloe anywhere. When she tried to scope her from beneath, the punk suddenly emerged from behind her and pulled her below. She managed just barely to gasp a breath of air before she was underwater. She wiggled furiously to get loose from the other girl's grip and back to the surface. Kate was panicking. She jabbed her elbow half-instinctively backwards and felt it hitting something. She felt the other girl releasing her grip and with a couple of strong kicks she made on the surface. The bluenette was already there, staring at her angrily.

"What the fuck's your problem?" she asked holding her sore ribs.

"What is my problem?" Kate snapped back. "What is yours? I barely had time to pull in some air! I fricking panicked!"

The bluenette backed away at the blonde's reaction, realizing she had stepped over the line. "Dude, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to… I'm sorry."

"I'm starting run short on those," Kate said, scowling at the mortified punk sternly, until she no longer could keep her crust and sniggered.

"What, were you just faking to be angry?" Chloe retorted.

"Two can play this game, Price," the blonde smirked mischievously and splashed water over the bemused bluenette.

"Heyy!" Chloe exclaimed lifting her arm for protection. "You realize, of course that this means war," the punk smirked back and retaliated.

* * *

Chloe was leaning on her elbows her back against the pool edge. She was gazing the ceiling on which the pool lighting projected wavy patterns. She turned slightly to face Kate who had joined her and was resting her jaw on her arms.

"That was hella fun, don't you think," Chloe said to the blonde.

"Yes it was, although I hadn't exactly planned on doing my hair afterwards," Kate remarked as she pulled off the loop that was holding her now soaked bun together. She shook her head a few times to let her long locks to settle against her back. Having her hair open changed the small blonde's appearance completely, harking back to the late sixties and the days of flower power and free love.

"You really should keep your hair open like that, y'know."

"I wish I could but it gets so easily tangled."

"No problem, just make dreadlocks out of them."

"Um, maybe not," Kate grimaced at the thought. "So, do you come here often for a moonlight swim?"

"I used to come here with Rachel every now and then," Chloe's expression became melancholic. "After… not so much."

"Did you go swimming with Max?"

"We used to go to Lake Palachak and sometimes swim in the ocean." The punk smiled, when she remembered something. "There was one time, when we were at Lake Palachak. Max insisted in trying to dive from the ledge at the end of the lake."

"You mean the infamous Point of no return?"

"The one and only. Once you climb in there, the only way down is to dive into the water," Chloe explained. "Max climbed over there, took one peek over the ledge and didn't dare to jump. We had to call the rescue team to lower her down in a harness. Our parents were so mad at us."

"They were mad at you too?" Kate asked.

"Well, I may have dared Max into it," Chloe chuckled.

"Shocker!" the blonde rolled her eyes.

The punk let out a deep sigh. "Oh man, I miss them both so much!"

Kate put her arm around the taller girl's shoulder. "I know Chloe, I miss them too, even though I really never talked to Rachel and I knew Max for only for a short time."

"Anything you'd like to share about Max?"

The smaller girl contemplated for a moment, before she started smiling. "On the very first day of this semester, I was sitting on the grass at the dormitory courtyard and doodling for my book project. I was so concentrated in my drawing that I didn't see Max coming, before I heard the click and whir of her camera. I looked up and there she was flapping the picture that she had just taken of me. She walks to me and introduces herself: 'Hi, sorry, didn't mean to disturb you. I'm Max Caulfield and I'm new here.' She gave the picture to me and you could really tell that she had a knack for photography."

"Yeah, I saw some of her stuff in her room," Chloe concurred. "Just curious why she stuck to that old Polaroid."

"She told me once that with a Polaroid camera you get the best of both the analog and digital worlds," Kate said. "The only thing Max complained about the Polaroid camera was that the film used in it was getting pretty expensive to purchase."

"Yeah, I actually have one of those cameras myself," the punk remarked. "It used to be my dad's. Wonder if it has any film in it."

Chloe felt a shiver going through her spine, so she pulled herself out of the water. "It's getting chilly, I'm getting dressed." She walked to the towels that Kate had brought and took one. She took a quick glance at the blonde and saw that she was gazing at her. "Dude, you're not checking me out, are you?" the punk asked, grinning mischievously and was rewarded with an instant blush from the smaller girl.

"S-sorry! I d-didn't mean to…" The rest of Kate's stammering scrambled into bubbling as she went underwater.

Chloe got dressed up and tried her best to keep her poker face as the smaller girl climbed out of the water, grabbed her towel and made it swiftly to the locker room, her ears and cheeks burning red. She returned a few moments later all dressed up and having somewhat restored her composure. The punk did her best to resist the overwhelming urge to sass the blonde a bit more. "Ok, time to bail," she said instead.

They turned off the lights and exited the building the same way they had arrived.

"Thank you, it was fun," Kate said when they were walking across the courtyard.

"You're welcome," Chloe answered. "Let's do it again sometime. Next time I'll bring my bikini," she added with a smirk.

"I-it's not necessary." The blonde blushed again.

They walked through the passageway towards the dormitory. Just as they were about to step onto the dormitory courtyard, they heard discussion. Chloe recognized the other speaker to be one of the campus security personnel and the other was Principal Wells, the latter being overwrought and drunk.

"Looks like you're not going to sleep in your bed tonight," the punk whispered to the blonde. "You can crash at my place, if you want to."

"If it's not too much trouble," the blonde said.

"Nah, no trouble at all," the bluenette smiled. "Come on, my truck's at the parking lot."

* * *

The first rays of morning sun woke Kate up. She looked bemusedly at the strange surroundings before she remembered that she was in Chloe's room and in her bed. She tried to turn but as soon as she moved, the punk, who was spooned around her, whimpered and pulled her closer with her arm.

Kate felt slightly awkward. If one didn't count her sister, she'd never been in bed this closely with anyone. The smell of nicotine and weed was prominent with her sleeping partner and in the bed clothing. On the other hand, the bluenette's embrace was warm and soothing. She could still feel her ears blushing, when she thought how the punk had caught her checking her out. Deep inside Kate knew that she'd done that on purpose and she could feel a sting in her conscience. On the other hand, the thought of the taller girl's naked body made her feel something that wasn't unpleasant at all. She couldn't quite explain the feeling as she had never felt this way before. She could feel a sudden gush of warmth and tenderness in her groin. Without even realizing, Kate slipped her hand under the duvet and touched her mound. The sudden sensation of touching the tender spot made her realize what she was doing and she jolted free from the taller girl's embrace.

"Whoa w-what happened?" the punk exclaimed groggily and flustered.

"I-, uh, nothing!" the blonde said hastily, her cheeks glowing red.

Chloe's bewilderment turned into amusement. "D'awwww! Wittle Katie had naughty thoughts."

"I did no such thing!" Kate retorted, blushing some more.

"Come on, it's okay to fantasize," Chloe chuckled.

The smaller girl stared awkwardly at her feet. "I-, it's just that I've never had such thoughts before. I've been raised to morals and abstinence."

The bluenette stood up and walked in front of the blonde. "You oughta stretch your boundaries and try new things now that you're no longer living at home." Chloe's mouth was only inches away from Kate's. "I dare you to kiss me, on the lips."

Kate stared at the smirking mouth. One part of her wanted nothing more than to kiss those burgundy pink lips. She could feel her head moving forward a fraction of an inch, before she turned herself away. "I-, I can't."

"Suit yourself," the punk shrugged her shoulders and threw herself back on the bed.

Kate stared at the wall, wishing to be able to turn back time so that she could take on the dare. _It would've been just a playful kiss. It's not like you're gay or anything._

The buzz and chime of Chloe's phone pulled Kate out of her thoughts. She turned to watch how the bluenette reached her phone and unlocked it.

"It's from Mom. She's already left to the diner and asks me to come over," Chloe said. "Wanna join me for breakfast?"

"Um, no thanks," the blonde declined. "I have a class starting soon and I can't really skip it."

"Oh, okay. I'll drop you at the campus then." The punk stood up again. "We better get dressed."

* * *

Chloe parked her truck at the parking lot at the end of the diner and walked inside. Her mother was standing by one of the booths and talking to a couple roughly her age.

"Oh, there she is," Joyce turned her look towards her daughter. "Honey, come over here to say hello!"

Chloe took a few steps towards the booth, before she recognized the couple who was sitting at the table. She had not seen them for five years but Vanessa and Ryan Caulfield hadn't really changed from the day they moved to Seattle. The only difference were the dark circles around the red and watery eyes. Obviously the loss of their only daughter had been a devastating blow for them both.

"Chloe! Let me look at you," Vanessa Caulfield said and stood up. She walked to the bluenette and took her into her embrace, to which she responded by wrapping her own arms around the older woman's back. Chloe couldn't quite hide her awkwardness about the situation as she wasn't accustomed to public displays of affection from her elders.

"H-hi, Vanessa," Chloe said, defaulting to first name basis that they had been on before the Caulfields' move to Seattle.

"Look at you, you've all grown up," Vanessa said, when she retreated a few steps and looked at the punk.

"You haven't changed a bit," Chloe returned the compliment.

"Hey there, kiddo," Ryan Caulfield said and extended his arm for a handshake. "Snazzy hair."

"Hi, Ryan." Chloe shook the offered hand. "Thanks, it's the shampoo I use."

They all stood quietly for a brief moment, until Chloe broke the silence. "My condolences."

"Thank you, Chloe," Vanessa said and tapped the corner of her eye with a napkin. "We still can't believe that our baby girl is gone."

"Yeah, I'm having a hard time to get my head around it too." The punk gazed into the distance.

The Caulfields sat on the other side of the table and Chloe sat across them. Joyce excused herself and to take order from a truck driver that had sat by the counter.

"Joyce told us that you were the first one to find Max. Did she say anything to you?" Ryan asked.

"No, she was already gone, when I got to her. I tried to resuscitate her but it was too late," Chloe answered. "I'm so sorry I couldn't save her." She wiped a tear from her cheek with her palm.

"I'm sure you did your best," Ryan assured. "We are grateful for that."

"Joyce mentioned that you lost another friend too on that day," Vanessa said.

"Yeah, Rachel," Chloe confirmed. "She had been missing from last spring. Presumably the same bastard that killed Max had overdosed Rachel and buried her in the old junkyard." She took a short pause before continuing. "Rachel was my only friend after-, after Max left." There was a slightest hint of contempt in the last sentence.

For Ryan the true meaning of the words went unnoticed but Vanessa could see it in punk's eyes. She took the girl's hands into her own. "We're sorry that we took Max away from you, when you probably would've needed her the most." The older woman looked the younger one in the eye. "We knew how close you two were and believe me, if there had been some way that you two could have been together, we would've taken it. We were in talks with Joyce, before we left and discussed about the possibility for you to spent weekends together either here or in Seattle. What we didn't expect was that you two would completely fall out of touch after our departure."

"Yeah, I suppose you could say we fell out of touch and not in the best way," Chloe said bashfully. She remembered how her mother had suggested to her to ask Max for a weekend visit or if she wanted to go to Seattle to see the brunette. Every time, Chloe had stated that she wasn't interested and soon Joyce had stopped asking.

"I know that the timing of our move was the worst possible and we should've brought the subject up first thing instead of leaving it to the last possible moment," Vanessa said. "We also thought about the possibility that Max had stayed behind until school starts but she told us that she didn't want to stay here."

The punk bit her lower lip as tears flowed down her cheeks. It had been so easy to blame Max and everyone else for abandoning her on her darkest moment. In a way she had done so until this week. Max had probably been as devastated about the move as she had and despite her own issues the brunette had selflessly tried to reach out for her. Chloe had however failed to see it through her own self-pity. Instead, as her last words to her best friend she had told her to fuck off. Now she couldn't take back those words even if she wanted to.

"I-, I drove her away," Chloe whispered. "I was so grief struck and angry back then. It was either my way or the highway." she buried her head into her arms.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Chloe," Ryan spoke up. "You'd just lost your father. I wasn't much older when I lost mine. Even though it wasn't so sudden, I was really a wreck for a long time and Vanessa had to take all the resulting heat, which I'm not proud of. I'm just glad she stuck by me in spite of everything."

"You know, Max was actually really anxious to get in touch with you, when she heard she had been accepted in Blackwell," Vanessa added. "Too bad you didn't get the chance to reconnect before…" the woman's voice faded away, when a wave of anxiety took over her. She took another napkin to dry her tears.

 _Yeah, I managed to screw that up too. Big time,_ Chloe thought. _How am I ever going to be able to tell them that I'm partly responsible for their daughter's death?_

"Do you want to join us tomorrow morning to pay last respects to Max?" Ryan asked. "We'll be taking her coffin to Lincoln City to be cremated and then return here for the memorial to be held at the school."

"Cremated?" Chloe asked, lifting her head. "I thought you would bury Max in Seattle."

"Yes, that was our initial plan but when we arrived here yesterday to see Max and retrieve her personal belongings, there was a note in Max's handwriting with specific instructions to cremate her body and give half of the ashes to you," Ryan explained. "I suppose you don't know anything about this?"

Chloe looked at the couple dumbstruck. "Why'd Max want me to have half of her remains?"

"That's what we've been wondering too." Ryan pulled out a notebook filled with post-it notes. "She'd also left a note with instructions to give her diary to you," he said, giving the notebook to the punk. "We're as puzzled as you seem to be about all this but we wish to honor our daughter's last wish, so we've arranged the cremation in Lincoln City, which is the closest place with the facilities to do so. The ashes will be divided to two urns and you'll get the other one. The other we will take back to Seattle with us."

The bluenette held the notebook in her hands. Why would Max want her to have her diary? It probably held the answer to some of the questions but now wasn't the time to delve into it.

"I hope I'd know something that might shed some light to this issue but as I said, I haven't talked to Max since your move, therefore I am as puzzled as you are."

"It's all right," Vanessa said. "If this is what our daughter wanted, so shall it be."

"But I'd be glad to join you tomorrow," Chloe said. "Would it be okay, if I brought someone with me? One of Max's classmates was quite close with her. She'd probably like to pay her respects too."

"Sure, bring her along," Ryan said. "9 a.m.?"

"We'll be there," the punk affirmed.

Joyce came back to the table with the coffee pot. "You guys ready to make your orders?"

"I think we are," Vanessa said. "You want to join us for breakfast, Chloe? Our treat."

"I'd love to, thanks!"

* * *

Kate was lying on a gynecological examination chair, wearing an examination gown and legs spread on the stirrups. A cool breeze on her nethers reminded, why she was here. Chloe was sitting beside her and holding her hand. The punk had picked her up from the academy and given her a ride to the hospital. Kate had been adamant about Chloe being with her through the whole ordeal despite the objections from the medical staff.

"Thank you for being with me here," the blonde said to the bluenette.

"Sure, no problem," Chloe responded. "Say, I was in talks with Max's folks. They asked me to join them tomorrow morning to pay their respects to Max, before they take her body to be cremated in Lincoln City. Wanna come with me?"

"Are you sure, Max's parents wouldn't mind?" Kate asked.

"They're cool with it," Chloe reassured.

"Then I'd love to come with you."

The two girls were interrupted, when the door opened and a woman in medical staff clothing stepped in.

"Good afternoon, you must be Kate Marsh, right?" the woman asked.

Kate nodded in response.

"Good! I'll be performing the sexual assault examination for you. My name is Amy and I am one of the nurses certified to do the examination here at Arcadia Bay General," the woman introduced herself. "Is this your partner?" she asked, nodding at Chloe.

"My-, uh, no!" Kate responded with her cheeks blushing. "Chloe is my friend. She's here as a support."

"Oh, sorry, didn't mean to embarrass you," Amy said. "Your friend seems to be very concerned about your well-being." The remark was rewarded with a scowl from the punk.

The nurse opened the sealed rape-kit she had brought with her. "All right, I'm going to talk you through the whole process," she began. "First I'm going to ask you some questions about your medical background like your menstrual history and such, then I'm going to ask some specific questions about the assault. Finally I'm going to perform the physical examination. I'm going to describe every part of the physical examination in detail before I perform them. If you at any point feel uncomfortable, please let me know and I'll stop. Do you understand?"

"Y-yes," Kate answered quietly.

"All right, let's begin then."

Kate answered bravely to the questions about her medical background, even though most of the questions were quite personal and sensitive. Amy did her best to make her feel comfortable, when she asked the questions. Reliving the events of that fateful night was grueling and only the tight grip from the bluenette enabled Kate to go through what she could remember from that night. This didn't prepare her at all for the physical examination though.

"Ok, I'm going to have to lift your gown to take a look at your genitalia," Amy said. "I'm also going to take some samples from inside with a swab. Are you ok or do you want to take a breather?"

"N-no, let's get this over with," the blonde said. She felt Chloe squeezing her hand momentarily, as to affirm that she was still there.

The nurse lifted Kate's gown and spread her thighs to get a better view. The sensation of fingers touching her nethers made her twitch slightly. She tried to think of something that would put her at ease, something safe and comforting. The only thing she could come up with was the bluenette holding her hand. Kate exhaled slowly managed to relax. The rest of the physical examination went through relatively smoothly.

"All right, you can get dressed," Amy said. "There seems to be neither external nor internal visual signs of penetration. Of course the longer the time from the suspected assault, more inconclusive the visual signs are. The swab and blood test results will be ready next week, so we can tell for sure."

"Okay," Kate said as she stood up and walked behind the curtain to dress up.

"Still, I'd put my money on that your integrity is intact," the nurse said. "Of course, I can't even begin to imagine what you've gone through but I hope it offers at least some consolation."

"It does, thanks," the blonde said from behind the curtain.

"I have your contact info, so I'll be calling you as soon as I have the results," Amy said. "Talk to you then." She walked out of the room.

* * *

Chloe was waiting outside the examination room for Kate to get dressed. She had excused herself, when the blonde had gone behind the curtain. She was clenching her fists in anger. She really wanted to hit something, or someone. Having had to watch Kate endure what must have been the most embarrassing moment of her life, second maybe only to the events that had led to this one, had made the punk's blood boil for those that had put the smaller girl into this situation. To Victoria and her cronies for making Kate a subject of mockery and almost driving the poor girl to commit a suicide, to Nathan for drugging and taking an advantage of her and finally, to that bastard Jefferson for using her to fulfil his twisted perversion.

On the other hand, Chloe felt admiration for the smaller girl, how bravely she had endured the whole ordeal. Kate was stronger than her appearance led to believe, she didn't whine about little things. The punk could easily understand why Kate and Max had become friends. They were so alike in more ways than just their overall kindness. Chloe couldn't help wondering, how her life might have turned out, if she had known Kate already when her father had died. The smaller girl most probably would've helped her to get over her father's dead and Max's move and probably convinced her to keep in touch with the now deceased brunette. _Probably would be singing Gospels and shit,_ Chloe chuckled at the thought. _Nah, probably not. Kate's not the type that strikes with their religious propaganda, when a person is most vulnerable._

There was just something about the petite blonde that made the punk smile, like she hadn't done in years. Chloe came to realize that Kate was beginning to awake similar feelings in her that she had felt for Rachel, and even for Max, before she left. Of course the thought of Kate and her being anything more than good friends was an impossible equation. Kate would probably meet some nice boy in college, get married and have a half a dozen kids or something. How could she possibly be interested in a messed up punk girl in any other way than as a friend, or worse yet, as a charity case.

_Fuck, I could use a smoke right now!_

Kate stepped out of the examination room. "Thanks for being with me there! It really made the difference," she smiled to the punk.

"S'no problem," Chloe smiled. "So you've never had your twat checked before?"

"No," Kate said, blushing. "I'm not on the pill or anything, so there has been no need."

"Soo, you hungry?" the punk asked as they walked down the aisle.

"Like a wolf," the smaller girl said.

"Great! Let's go to Two Whales. They still have the best burgers in a hundred mile radius."

They had almost reached the elevator, when someone at the wending machine caught their eye. Chloe furrowed her brows, when Kate turned and walked towards the tall pixie-cut blonde.

"Hey, Victoria!" the smaller blonde greeted the taller one.

"Oh, hi Katie!" Victoria answered cheerfully. "Price," she continued bluntly.

"Chase," the punk grumbled back.

"Are you seeing Taylor? How is she?" Kate asked.

"Yes, she just came out of coma a moment ago, so the nurse drove me out of the room," the tall blonde answered. "Thought I'd get something to eat while they're doing the check-ups."

"Taylor's awake? Oh, thank God!" the smaller girl exclaimed.

Chloe didn't say anything. She just stood with her arms crossed next to Kate, wondering how she could be so genuinely happy about the well-being of a person that had made her life a living hell. _But that's Kate Marsh in a nutshell for you._

"I'm going to get a cup of tea from the wending machine," Kate said to the punk. "You want something?"

"Cup o' joe, please," Chloe answered. "Black, with sugar."

As the smaller girl walked to the wending machine, Chloe turned to face Victoria. "Listen up, bitch! I know that you put up that video of Kate," the punk said sternly.

"Look, I-," Victoria started but the punk raised her finger furiously.

"Let. Me. Finish," Chloe growled. "Next time you see some poor girl in a similar situation, I suggest you try to see if she's all right, instead of shooting a fucking video of it and posting it into the fucking internet!"

Victoria looked at the bluenette expressionlessly until she had finished. "Can I finally say something?" she asked. "Good! I know what I did was cruel and inconsiderate, especially considering the circumstances. I've apologized to Kate and removed the video. I realize that it's too little too late and I'm going to dedicate the rest of my miserable life to making it up to her. Comprende?"

"Uh, okay," Chloe said bemusedly. This wasn't exactly the response that she had expected from the Queen Bee.

"I've understood that you and Max go way back," Victoria said.

"Yeah, you could say we were pretty tight, before she moved to Seattle," the punk admitted.

"I'm from Seattle too, you know," the blonde said. "I kinda wish I would've met Max, when she moved to Seattle. Maybe we would've had a different relationship." She let out a deep sigh. "I gave Max a hard time, when she came to Blackwell, when I reality I would've just wanted to hang out with her. Now it's too late."

"Yeah, welcome to the club," Chloe just said. She leaned closer to Victoria, when she saw Kate return with two cardboard mugs. "If I will ever find out that you've hurt Kate's feelings, I'm going to make your life a living hell," she whispered into the blonde's ear.

"I won't," Victoria said, scowling at the punk.

"Here you go," Kate said, passing the cup of coffee to Chloe. "I'm sorry, Victoria, I completely forgot my manners. Would you have liked to have something?"

"That's all right, I'm good," the blonde smiled and flashed the bottle of water that she had bought from the wending machine.

"Miss Chase?" A nurse came to them. "The doctor has finished examining your friend. She's asking for you."

"Thank you," Victoria nodded. "I'm going to go see Taylor now. You want to come and say hi?"

"You sure, she doesn't mind?" Kate asked.

"I'm sure that she'd like to see some familiar faces right now," the blonde assured.

Victoria walked towards the door of Taylor's room with Kate right behind her. Chloe stayed behind and contemplated whether she'd just wait outside or follow them. She didn't have an enormous urge to socialize with Taylor Christensen but she thought that it might be better to go in case Victoria and Taylor decided to give Kate any shit. Not that she didn't trust Victoria to be good on her word but it never hurt to make sure.

Chloe opened the door. Kate and Victoria had already been there for a short moment while she had been chewing over her decision. She was surprised to see the two girls curled around Taylor and all of them crying.

"Okay, what did I miss?" the punk asked bemusedly.

"Oh, Chloe this is so awful!" Kate said with an upset tone.

"What is?"

"Taylor. Her spinal cord was damaged in the shooting," Kate explained. "She's paralyzed from the waist down. She'll never walk again."

**To be continued...**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thursday**

Kate was sitting alone in her bed. She'd been crying the whole evening after Chloe had dropped her at the dormitory. There was an almost empty box of tissues next to her and the waste basket was nearly gushing over from the used ones.

Kate had heard Victoria returning to her room, half-running steps echoing in the corridor. She had managed to pull herself together enough so that she'd went to the taller blonde's door to ask if she was all right. While Kate could have heard Victoria crying, she had not got an answer. After moment of trying, she'd given up and gone back to her own room and sat on the bed.

While Taylor had been one of those who had bullied her, Kate couldn't help but feel compassion towards Victoria's paralyzed friend. Chloe, of course, had simply brushed it off as poetic justice, when they had driven back from the hospital. Kate had not taken the punk's belittling remark very well, so the rest of the journey had been uneasy to say the least.

By any sense, Kate shouldn't have been spending time, much less thinking about the blue-haired girl but she sensed that behind all that brash and bluntness there was a vulnerable girl who just needed someone who would listen to her and to whom she could count on. On the other hand, Kate couldn't get the image of Chloe standing by the pool in her birth suit out of her head. The vision of the punk's toned body seemed to offer a welcomed distraction from all the anxiety.

The more Kate kept thinking about Chloe the more she could feel a warming sensation to build up inside her. Almost surreptitiously, her hand slipped its way through the waist line of her panties. Even if Kate at some cognizant level acknowledged that she was going to do something that she had chastised herself from, the instinctive side of her suppressed the thought away. When the creeping fingers found their target, Kate didn't pull her hand away from the sensation but instead began a fondling motion to enhance the feeling. By the time her other hand reached her breast, she was completely succumbed to the sensation to even realize what she was doing.

* * *

Chloe lied in her bed, wearing a tank top and panties. An ashtray rested on her chest as she smoked a cigarette. The first light of dawn began to filter through the Stars 'n Stripes covering the window. She had not slept much as she had been too agitated to fall asleep.

Not many people in Arcadia Bay had the guts to tell Chloe off. Her mother, of course was one of them, and David to some extent but even from them she would seldom heed whatever advice there might be. Kate was a different case, though. For some reason, it mattered to the punk what the petite blonde thought of her. Of course, Chloe had not shown it to her, when she had pouted the whole drive back to Blackwell after Kate's rebuke. On the other hand, Kate had not backed off in her opinion in order to reconcile. Therefore, an awkward silence had prevailed in the beaten truck.

Chloe took another drag from her cigarette before stumping it into the ashtray. The smoke trailed out from her mouth, accompanied with a sigh. Kate was different from practically anyone that she had been with. The small blonde was kind and empathic but still strong in her opinions. It made Chloe realize how big a blow the viral video must've been for Kate to even consider ending her life. On the other hand, she couldn't but wonder how quickly Kate was willing to put that all behind her in order to offer her support to those, who had driven her in such a desperate position. _She's a lot stronger than she gives herself credit for._

Chloe stood up and walked across the hall to the bathroom. She got out of her clothes and stepped into the shower. She turned the tap on and leaned against the wall as the warm water ran down her back. The bluenette opened the shampoo bottle, poured some of the liquid on her palm and lathered her hair. She then poured some more and repeated the operation on the green bush on her pubic mound.

Chloe stepped under the streaming water and rinsed her hair. She arched her back and let the water flow down her abdomen while she placed her right hand on her mound and with circular motion rinsed away the froth. Once done, Chloe kept her hand on top of the mound and began to caress the tender area. She leaned against the wall and slipped the fingers of her free hand into her mouth and slowly stroked them between her lips. A quiet moan escaped between her lips, when she gave her imagination free reigns and fantasized it was Kate's hands caressing her.

* * *

Kate was also in the shower. She sat on the shower stall floor, her arms curled tightly around her feet and her head resting against her knees, hoping that the streaming water would wash away all the guilt and remorse she was feeling.

Yesterday's turn of events and the clash with Chloe had left Kate in an emotionally turbulent state. On the other hand, her accidental self-exploration at Chloe's place last morning had kept itching her on a subconscious level throughout the day. Therefore, last night, in her quest for solace, she had simply given in to the desire to scratch that itch and in the process thrown whatever principles of chastity she may have upheld out of the window.

Touching herself wasn't the worst part, though. Kate had also begun to question her own sexuality. She remembered that she had not ever been particularly interested in boys in her teen years but she had simply set that off with the fact that as a devout Christian she should be chaste until marriage. To the possibility that she might actually be into girls she had not even shared a thought, until now.

Kate found herself in conflict with her devotional upbringing, which altogether condemned same sex relationships. She had also a pretty good understanding where the Bible stood in this matter. The thing was, though, that while none of the references to homosexuality in the Bible were approving towards it, they needed to be viewed in context. The context being the period, when the passages were written, reflecting upon the cultural and historical reality of the authors. Times were completely different compared to now. That didn't offer any consolation, though, as this would be even a greater shock to her family than the video was. While her father and sisters would accept Kate as she was, her mother and aunt would most certainly not approve her change of sexual orientation.

Kate didn't know how to deal with this situation. The only person she could've possibly even considered to talk about it, was dead. She extended her arms and crossed her hands as the water still kept scouring her naked body. _Please, God, what am I supposed to do?_

* * *

Chloe parked her truck in front of the stairway leading to the Blackwell Academy main building. She cranked the driver side window down, lit a cigarette and picked up her phone.

**Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:42 a.m.: Hey, you up?**

**Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:42 a.m.: Look, I'm sorry about yesterday. It was hella rude of me to say such things.**

**Kate 10/10/2013, 8:43 a.m.: You're right, it was.**

**Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:43 a.m.: Like I said, I'm sorry. R we cool?**

**Kate 10/10/2013, 8:44 a.m.: We're cool.**

**Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:45 a.m.: I'm parked at the front of the school, if you still want to come with me to the funeral parlor.**

**Kate 10/10/2013, 8:45 a.m.:** **B** **there in 5.**

Chloe tucked the phone in her pocket and tapped the excess ashes off from the cigarette out of the window before taking another drag. She blew the smoke out of the window and looked down at the town center. She would've wanted to be just about anywhere else than here right now.

Max Caulfield, Rachel Amber and Kate Marsh. The common denominator for the three girls was that Chloe had either fallen for or was falling for them all. She felt it was life's way of bitch-slapping her straight in the face that the one girl she could only dream of getting would accompany her, when she would pay her last respects to the girls she had lost. Chloe recognized the signs all too well. She was falling for Kate, there was no doubt about it. She would've wanted to express her feelings to the smaller girl but the fear of rejection held her back. The whole idea was just bound to be doomed. Kate was probably as straight as they come.

 _Maybe it's time you accept that some things aren't just meant to be,_ Chloe thought as she flicked the burned cigarette out of the window. Just then Kate appeared at the top of the stairs and strut them down to the battered truck. The punk leaned over to unlock the passenger door. Fixing the central lock was somewhere down the long list of to-dos. The smaller girl pulled the door open and sat on the passenger seat.

"Um, hi," Chloe said, timidity in her voice.

"Hi," Kate answered with equal awkwardness. She kept her glance away from the bluenette.

"Look, I-," Chloe started.

"It's all right, Chloe," Kate interrupted her. "You have a right to your opinion."

"No, it's not all right!" the punk blurted, perhaps a bit more emphatically than she had intended. "I have a bad habit of expressing my opinion bluntly. It's kind of a defense mechanism." She turned the engine on and joined the traffic. "Life's given me so much shit that I just can't be bothered to be amicable."

"I think you've been amicable towards me, at least for the most part," the blonde said quietly, still looking away.

The remark made Chloe to turn to look the small girl on the passenger's seat. She still couldn't get an eye contact, though. _Because you're hella worth it_ , Chloe wanted to say to her but she just wasn't able to form the words.

The rest of the journey to the funeral parlor went in silence. Chloe parked her truck next to a white Saab 9-4X that had Washington plates. _Looks like Max's parents are making a decent living._ Chloe turned the engine off and both girls stepped out.

They walked inside the parlor, into a room that was divided into a small lobby space and a couple of small offices. The Caulfields were sitting on a sofa. They stood up as they saw the two girls walking in.

"Good morning, Chloe," Vanessa Caulfield said and gave the bluenette a hug.

"Good morning," Chloe responded as she embraced the older woman. "Ryan," she shook hands with Max's father. "This is Kate Marsh," the punk introduced the smaller girl.

"Pleased to meet you, Mrs. and Mr. Caulfield," Kate said courteously.

"Please, call us Vanessa and Ryan," Vanessa said as she shook hands with the blonde.

"I'm so sorry for your loss," Kate expressed her condolences. "I only got to know Max for a short time but I was proud to call her a friend."

"Thank, you Kate, that is so kind of you," Ryan said as the member of the parlor staff opened a door to the back. "Are you guys ready?"

 _No, I am not!_ Chloe heard her brain shout frantically. "I guess," she simply said.

They all stepped into a small room that was dimly lit. The only light in the room was in the middle of the room, right above a white coffin. The top half of the lid was open, and the light illuminated the body that was lying inside. Chloe extended her hand desperately, hoping that someone would hold it. To her surprise, Kate took Chloe's hand into her own and walked with her to the coffin. The Caulfields stayed further back.

Max lied in there with a peaceful expression like she had been just sleeping. She looked as beautiful as she always had looked in Chloe's mind. She was dressed in a simple black dress. A golden doe necklace was resting just above the bodice. The chestnut hair was neatly combed down. Chloe bit her lip and squeezed Kate's hand as a trickle of tears ran down her cheek. The blonde did the sign of the cross with her free hand and recited the Lord's Prayer with a silent voice.

"Would you give a minute?" Chloe whispered to Kate, when she had ended her prayer.

"Sure." The smaller girl let go of the punk's hand and backed away next to Max's parents.

"Uh, hey, Max. It's me, Chloe," the bluenette said with a barely audible voice. "Things were a bit hectic on Monday, huh? I didn't get a chance to talk to you." She let out a deep sigh. "I'm so sorry, Max. It should've been me in that bathroom and not you. You had nothing to do with this epic failure that I call my life."

"I'm sorry that I never reached out for you, while you were in Seattle. Maybe if I had, we wouldn't be here right now. I realize now that I shut you out and that's why you didn't reach out for me either. I guess neither of us wasn't brave enough to take that step."

"I wish I could've reconnect with you. We'd probably had a hella awesome time together, y'know, like the old times. I miss you so much, Max. You and I had something special. Nothing else comes even close, not even you, Rachel as I know you're listening." Chloe smiled shortly. "You have to wait until tomorrow as I'm having a special moment with Max here. You two are probably having a good laugh together watching me getting all mushy and shit."

"Anyway, Max, I want you to know that you'll always have a special place in my heart and I will always love you." Chloe took her beanie off, leaned forward and placed a kiss on the dead brunette's forehead. "Au revoir, Maxaroni."

* * *

Kate watched how the punk leaned over the coffin and placed the kiss before withdrawing and joining the others. She stepped forward after getting a discreet nod from Ryan and walked back to the coffin.

"H-hi Max, it's Kate," she addressed her dead friend. "I still can't my head around the idea that you've gone." She closed her eyes. "You know, if it had not been for Chloe, I would've joined you in death. I felt so desperate about my situation that I was ready to end it all."

"In retrospective I feel so stupid, especially after I found out that I was drugged and abused." Kate paused for a moment. "It was Mr. Jefferson. He and Nathan Prescott drugged and kidnapped girls and took sick and perverted pictures of them, and me. I don't know if it is a blessing that you didn't find out the truth about Mr. Jefferson, because I know how much you looked up to him. No matter, he is dead and he can't hurt you from where he is going."

"If anything good has come out of all this, it's that Victoria is really nice towards me now. She even apologized for posting that awful video. I don't know why she has to keep up that bitchy front but I think you and Victoria could've been really good friends given time."

"I really miss our tea sessions together. There's something I would've liked to confide in you about. I-, I think I'm falling for Chloe, and I feel so conflicted. According to my belief I shouldn't be having these feelings and I'm confident that my family wouldn't approve. Still, I can't help what I'm feeling and it's eating me alive. You'd probably told me to follow my heart and God knows I'd like to. I just don't know if I'm brave enough to do it. I mean I don't even know how Chloe feels about me. She's actually been bit awkward towards me lately." The blonde sighed in frustration. "I don't know, maybe this is just some stupid crush and it'll go away in time."

Kate touched Max's hand. She was surprised how cold it felt. "Goodbye, Max. I won't forget you." Kate did the sign of the cross again and joined the others.

"Thank you for letting us come to bid our farewells," Chloe said.

"Thank you for coming," Vanessa said to the girls. "We really appreciate it and I know Max would've appreciated it too."

"Alas, we have to get going," Ryan said. "The hearse is waiting outside. We need to get to Lincoln City by eleven."

"We should make it back before the memorial service at the school starts," Vanessa added. "We'll bring your urn there and participate the memorial, then we have to head back to Seattle."

"Have a safe trip!" Kate wished before the girls exited the room.

They stepped outside and walked to the truck. Chloe lit up a cigarette and leaned against the truck door, taking drags and blowing up smoke in the brisk autumn air. Kate looked at the smoking bluenette furtively.

"Chloe, I-," the smaller girl started but the words got stuck in her mouth.

"Yes, Kate?" The punk turned to look at the blonde.

 _I think I'm falling in love with you_ , Kate wanted to say. "There's going to be a get together after the memorial at the Swimming hall. Just students. Would you like to come?" she asked instead.

"I dunno," Chloe said, smoke trailing from her mouth. "Might be fun, though. Sure, I'll come."

"Great! I'll take you there after the memorial," Kate said with a little enthusiasm in her voice.

"Cool!" Chloe flicked the cigarette away. "Step in, I'll give you a ride back to Blackwell."

* * *

The events on Monday and Tuesday had a significant impact on this day. Originally, the Vortex Club End of the World Party was supposed to take place tonight and the winner of the Everyday Heroes Contest was to be announced there. After the shooting and the hostage situation, the event was quietly cancelled and a memorial service for the victims at the school auditorium was to be held instead on late afternoon. The swimming hall that was reserved for the Vortex Club would not be entirely without festivities though, as the students had got permission to organize a more informal memorial event after the official one.

Chloe was standing in front of the Blackwell main entrance. She was wearing the best pair of black jeans she owned. Her top consisted of a dark purple button-down shirt and a black jacket. Her usual boots were replaced by a shiny pair of Doc Martens. She considered wearing her beanie but opted to left it home. Instead she had dyed away the strawberry blonde root growth of her hair, so that it was uniformly azure in color. The three-bullet necklace adorned her chest and a pair of suspenders hung around her thighs. A burning cigarette was hanging loosely between her lips.

The whole situation felt bizarre to the punk. The way her life had been going in the last few years she'd thought that it would be Max who'd attend her funeral and not the other way around. _Life is full of twists,_ she thought as she took the last drag from her cigarette and flicked it away.

Chloe was waiting for her mother and stepfather to arrive. The memorial service was for students, staff and family members, so she had to tag along with David. _Never thought I'd actually be happy to be associated with step-dork in any way._ She looked in the general direction of the dorms, trying to make Kate out of the stream of students wandering inside the building. A moment later, she could see the small blonde walking down the pathway, alone. She was wearing a black dress and a white shirt under a black cardigan. Chloe thought that she looked elegant in her plain outfit. Kate waved at her, when she saw her standing by the entrance.

"Hey, I thought you'd be already inside," the blonde said.

"I'm supposed to meet my mom and David here," the punk responded. "Wanna keep me company until they arrive?"

"Sure-, hey look! Max's parents are there." Kate pointed at the parking lot.

Chloe turned to see the couple coming towards the entrance. She waved at them.

"Vanessa, Ryan! You made it!" Chloe said to the couple.

"Yes, we made it, barely," Ryan remarked. "The cremation process took longer than we expected."

"So, Max is…"

"Her remains are divided into two urns," Ryan confirmed. "We'll give you the other one after the memorial."

"We're going inside," Vanessa said. "You coming with us?"

"I'm gonna wait for Mom and David," Chloe said, and cast a quick glance around her to see if they had already arrived.

"I can go with you and show you the way," Kate proposed. "We'll hold some seats for you."

"Ok, see you inside, then." The punk watched how the small blonde escorted Max's parents in. She was about dig out another cigarette, when she saw Joyce and David coming from the parking lot. It had been a while since she had seen her mother or David to dress up formally. In his suit, David was almost hansom, if you didn't count the pornstache. Chloe had once half-jokingly suggested that if he insisted on having a moustache, he should at least grow it into a horseshoe. Unsurprisingly, David had not been excited about the idea.

"Hi dear, you're looking smart," Joyce greeted her daughter.

"Thanks, Mom! You and Dave don't look too bad either."

"I should've ended my shift even shorter than I did," Joyce lamented. "We cut it awfully close as I had to take a shower and change."

"Well, we're here now," David commented. "Chloe,-" he cleared his throat. "Joyce told me how close you and Max were. I know that we've had our differences but I want you to know that if you ever need to talk about it or something else that's on your heart, I will listen."

Chloe was taken aback by the unexpected proposal. "Um, sure, thanks!"

"Should we go inside?" Joyce asked.

"Yeah, let's go," Chloe said. "Ryan and Vanessa are already inside. They're holding places for us."

David led them in and they made their way to the auditorium and to the front row, where the Caulfields and Kate were sitting. There were three empty seats between them and Rose and James Amber, Rachel's parents. After a quick introduction of David to the Caulfields and condolences to the Ambers they took their seats.

Chloe finally had a chance to take a better look at the stage before them. Right next to the podium there were large headshots of Max and Rachel in stands right behind a small table that had two lit candles on it. 'MAXINE SIOBHÁN CAULFIELD, 1995 – 2013' and 'RACHEL DAWN AMBER, 1994 – 2013' read under their respective pictures. Rachel looked radiant and confident in the picture but then again she always did. Max on the other hand looked just happy and Chloe recognized the picture to be an enlargement of one of Max's selfies that she had had on her room wall.

The auditorium started to be full. The front row at the other side of the aisle was filled by the Blackwell staff. Chloe looked behind her and could make out some familiar faces in the rows behind her. Justin Williams nodded to her briefly, when their eyes met. Victoria tried her best to ignore her stare. Courtney kept her eyes focused on the stage. Trevor was sitting with Dana Ward and Juliet Watson. As she let her gaze wander, Chloe took a moment to reminisce her prematurely ended venture as a Blackwell student. Contrary to the GPA in her student record might suggest, she was actually a very bright and intelligent girl and under normal circumstances her GPA would've been very close to 4. After her father's death, though, everything in her life had ceased to be normal.

The auditorium doors were closed. Principal Ray Wells stood up and walked to the podium. He tapped the microphone to make sure that it was on and eyed his notes one more time before clearing his throat.

"We are gathered here today to pay our respects to two of our students, Maxine Caulfield and Rachel Amber," Wells began his speech. "Both left us prematurely as a result of a transgression, leaving their loved ones and you, their fellow students in mourning. While the people behind these acts of cruelty are apprehended and will face justice, it offers only a little consolation in this moment of grief."

"Both Maxine and Rachel were talented students. Rachel was outgoing and social while Maxine, or Max as she preferred, was more of an observer and a curious mind. They never got a chance to meet each other but if they had met I can imagine that they would've gotten along very well. Their demise is a great loss to Blackwell but even greater loss it is to their loved ones." Wells turned to look at the front row, where they were sitting.

Chloe took a quick glance at David and saw that he was clenching his fists and his biceps were tensioning in rhythm. No one else seemed to notice it. Chloe had naturally heard the rumors that Wells might be tightly in the Prescotts' leash but her stepfather's behavior seemed to indicate that the Principal had been willing to watch Nathan's exploits through his fingers too long. The thought made Chloe frown angrily at the man in the podium.

"Max and Rachel were not the only victims of the events that have unraveled in the last few days," Wells continued his speech. "Taylor Christensen got caught in the crossfire during the apprehension of one of the perpetrators. While Taylor will live to see another day after all that's happened in the last few days, her life will be forever changed. I hope you join me as I wish all the best to Taylor and her family."

"Tonight, the winner of the Everyday Heroes contest was supposed to be announced at the End of the World party but in the light of recent events that party was cancelled. The winner will still be announced shortly but I will not be the one who has the privilege." Wells paused for a moment.

"This speech will be the last duty that I perform as the Principal of Blackwell Academy." A murmur swept through the audience. "As a Principal, my primary duty is the well-being and safety of the students and staff. I have failed miserably at fulfilling that duty. I have handed in my resignation to the school board, effective immediately. Michelle Grant will be taking over the Principal's duties until a successor is selected." Wells paused again and hung his head down, before addressing the people in the front row. "Mr. and Mrs. Caulfield, Mr. and Mrs. Amber, I am sorry that could not keep your children safe."

With that, Raymond Wells stepped down from the podium and stage. He walked to the Caulfields and offered his hand. Ryan and Vanessa stood up and shook hands swiftly. The atmosphere was clearly uneasy after Wells' announcement. He then proceeded to the Ambers and repeated the gesture. Chloe shot daggers at him with her eyes throughout the whole episode. Finally, Wells made his way to the auditorium exit in silence and closed the door behind him.

Apparently the announcement and the exit of the now former Principal had not been planned as the other staff members exchanged a few dumbfounded glances, before Michelle Grant stood up and hastily made her way to the podium.

"Thank you, Ray," Grant said, clearly peeved and trying to restore her composure. "Um, as the acting Principal, I'd also like to, on the whole staff's as well as my own behalf, express my deepest sympathies to all of you who were close to Max and Rachel," she managed to say. "They will be missed."

"We had a lengthy discussion about whether the Blackwell Academy entry to the Everyday Heroes exhibition should be cancelled. Having come to an agreement that it was what both Max and Rachel would've wanted, we decided to go ahead as planned. A jury consisting of school staff and the primary photographer of the Arcadia Bay Beacon chose the winning entry. The recent events may have caused the jury be slightly biased but the merits of the entry were enough by themselves for the title."

"And the winner is…" Michelle Grant turned on the projector and tapped the mousepad of a laptop a few times the picture on the screen flashed a few times to reveal the winning entry. "…Max Caulfield!" The picture of Max watching her photo montage was shown on the screen.

"Max's entry was posthumously submitted by Victoria Chase," the acting Principal explained as she turned to view the picture on the big screen.

Chloe turned to face the tall blonde that was sitting a few rows back. Victoria's face was deadpan.

"Did you know about this?" Chloe whispered to Kate.

"She did mention about it," Kate whispered back.

"Why would she throw a hands down win away?"

"I've come to learn these past few days that Victoria is more than her bitchy shell, even though she don't like to admit it."

Chloe turned her attention back to the podium, where Max's parents had gone to receive the award. Both Ryan and Vanessa shook hands with Mrs. Grant. Vanessa stepped behind the microphone and tapped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief.

"I... I am a rollercoaster of emotions right now," she began her speech. "I mostly feel sorrow and grief over the loss of our daughter but now I also feel pride over the talent that she possessed. I wish that she could be here with us so that we could share this moment with her. Thank you!"

The audience stood up one by one and began to applaud. Chloe stood up with the others and applauded. _Way to go, Maxaroni! You did it._

Vanessa raised her hand and the clapping quieted down. "Apparently, this prize included a trip to San Francisco to the exhibition with the purpose of the winner to be able to network and make contacts. While I and my husband will be going to San Francisco to admire Max's work, we would like to offer the prize trip to someone with a similar passion to the photography. I take that you have a runner-up in this competition?"

"We do," Mrs. Grant said. "Victoria Chase!"

The tall blonde stood up smiling and walked to the stage. Vanessa handed her the flight tickets and shook her hand. "Congratulations, dear and thank you for submitting Max's work on her behalf."

"It was the least I could do Mrs. Caulfield," Victoria said bashfully.

Chloe didn't know what to think of the blonde. It would've been so easy for Victoria just to leave Max's picture where she found it and she would be in the limelight. Of course she'll get to go to San Francisco but she'll be just another spectator among others. It would definitely not be so easy to network than it would be, if her own picture was exhibited. _That'll be the day, if I ever figure that girl out._

The Caulfields returned to their seats. Victoria changed a few words with Mrs. Grant, before she also returned to her seat. Mrs. Grant reminded the audience about the informal event later and formally ended the occasion. The people rose and began to disperse.

"Chloe, will you come with us to our car, so that we can give you the urn?" Ryan asked the punk as they stood up.

"Lead the way," Chloe answered.

They walked out of the main building and to the parking lot, where the Caulfields' SUV was parked. Ryan popped the trunk open and took a small, brass-plated urn out of the compartment.

"Here's what is left of our daughter," Ryan said wistfully. "I take that you respect Max's wishes regarding her remains."

"I will," Chloe promised as she took the urn. It felt heavier than she thought it would.

"We'll be heading back to Seattle now," Vanessa said. "Joyce, Chloe, it was good to see you again and it was a pleasure to meet you, David."

"It was nice seeing you and Ryan too," Joyce answered. "I just wish it could've happened under happier circumstances."

"Yes... It's going to take time to get used to the idea that our baby is gone," Vanessa said quietly, grabbing Ryan's arm.

"Do come over and visit us sometime," Ryan said. "You too, Chloe."

"Well, you don't have to wait another five years to come down here either," Joyce responded.

"Take care now and thank you," Vanessa said and gave a hug to both Joyce and Chloe.

"Have a safe trip home," Joyce said as she turned to give Ryan a hug.

"We'll let you know first thing we get home," Ryan promised. He turned over to Chloe to give her a hug. "Take care, kid."

"You too," Chloe answered.

Ryan and Vanessa shook hands with David and Kate, before they stepped into the SUV and drove off. Chloe watched the car disappear into the distance as she waved them goodbye with the others. She held the urn tightly in her grip. It felt bizarre that she was holding the remains of her best friend against her body.

"All right, I'm going to go home to change and do the evening shift," Joyce announced.

"Me too," David accompanied. "I have to watch over the evening's event."

"Be seeing you, Kate," Joyce said to the smaller girl as she took her husband's arm.

"Sure thing, Joyce," Kate responded. "Bye, Mr. Madsen."

Chloe and Kate watched the couple to walk to David's Valiant and leave. Chloe turned her attention to the smaller girl, who still seemed to appear uncomfortable around her, when they were alone.

"I'm gonna go home too to change into something more comfortable and to take Max home," Chloe said, casting a glance at the urn. "Ugh, that sounded just hella weird."

The remark seemed to get Kate a bit more relaxed. "Do you know, what you're going to do with Max's ashes?" she asked.

"Not yet," the punk answered. "I suppose Max has left me some kind of instructions, since her folks were left with some. Have to see if there's something in Max's diary."

"Well, I'll see you by the gym later," the smaller girl waved her goodbye and headed towards the dormitories.

"Yeah, sure," Chloe said as she watched the blonde walk away. She furrowed her eyebrows. Something was obviously bothering Kate. She'd have to try to get her open up when she would see her again at the event.

Chloe walked to her truck and opened the driver's door. She put the urn on the passenger seat and looked at it.

"Well, Max, it's just you and me now," Chloe said melancholically as she picked a cigarette from the pack and lit up.

* * *

Kate was standing in the passageway between the dorms and the main courtyard. She was feeling both nervous and uncomfortable. The former because she would be meeting Chloe soon and the latter because she was almost completely out of her comfort zone with her outfit. Kate had decided to consult Dana in order to be properly dressed for the occasion. The cheerleader had been more than willing to give a helping hand.

As a result, Kate was now wearing the tightest and the most low-necked t-shirt tops ever, one of Dana's. Combined with a push-up bra, she actually had a bit of a cleavage, with the cross of her necklace now firmly resting in the recess. Kate had put on the only pair of jeans she had in her wardrobe. They were actually rather fashionable with the tight cut and low waistline. Max had actually encouraged her to buy them, when they had gone shopping. Her trademark bun had been replaced with a tight ponytail á la Dana. The cheerleader had also given a subtle touch up to her lashes and eyelids that complemented the blusher applied on her cheeks and gloss on her lips.

Kate had hardly recognized her own image from the mirror after Dana's handiwork. Despite the cheerleader's objections, Kate had insisted putting on a cardigan, which she had left open. She had to admit that she looked kinda hot even though she felt so out of her comfort zone. Nevertheless, she would need all the help she could get for what she was going to do. She'd need just one more thing…

The final piece of the puzzle arrived in the form of Victoria, who paced determinedly towards the passageway. The taller blonde couldn't hide her amazement, when she saw the smaller girl.

"That's… that's quite an outfit, Kate," Victoria commented. "Not bad," she added approvingly.

"Do you have it?" Kate asked, ignoring the taller blonde's comments.

"Yes, I have it," Victoria said and dug out a hip flask out of her bag. "Are you absolutely sure you want this, considering what happened last time?"

"You know why it happened," Kate said tautly.

"Yes, I do know." The taller girl looked away momentarily. "Still, just plain alcohol can be treacherous to someone who's not used to it. You might still end up doing things that you might regret in the morning."

"I know what I'm doing," the smaller girl said, her voice trembling ever so slightly.

"All right, then," Victoria handed the flask to Kate. "For what it's worth, if there's going to be a video of your antics online tomorrow, I promise it'll not be mine."

"I appreciate that," Kate said and removed the cap from the flask. "What's in here?"

"Well, you requested something strong but easily drinkable, so I filled it with dark rum."

Kate took a small sip. The alcohol burned her throat but the caramelly taste mellowed it down a bit. She brought the flask again on her lips and this time took a longer swag, and another.

"Um, perhaps I should explain the idea of a flask," Victoria tried to moderate the smaller girl. "You're not supposed to empty the whole flask at one go."

"Look, I'm going to do something that freaks the living daylights out of me, so I'm going to need all the encouragement I can muster," Kate said and emptied the flask.

"Ohh-kay..." the taller blonde said in bewilderment and put the empty flask back into her bag. "Maybe I should keep an eye on you, just in case."

"I'll manage," Kate said bluntly, before the flabbergasted look on Victoria's face made her realize how harsh she had been towards the blonde. "I'm sorry, Victoria. I'm a bit tense about tonight, that's all. Thank you for helping me out."

"You're welcome," Victoria smiled. "And I wouldn't worry about being tense much longer." She winked her eye.

The remark made Kate chuckle inadvertently. She was already beginning to feel the buzz caused by the alcohol.

"I'll be close by, if you need me," the taller blonde said. "But now I'm going to go to make an appearance." She left the smaller girl by herself.

Kate stood still for a moment, before she came to think that she should probably head for the rendezvous point. She took one step forward and almost fell on her nose when she lost her balance.

 _Gosh, this really is something else than the communion wine,_ Kate thought as she stumbled slowly forward. _I'm not_ _so_ _sure if this was a good idea after all._ The anxiety took hold of her again.

* * *

Chloe parked her truck into the handicap zone and stepped out. She looked at her phone and sighed. She was running late. Luckily, Kate had not sent any messages inquiring her whereabouts.

The punk ran the flight of stairs two steps at a time. She looked around to see, if Kate was already there. She almost ignored the blonde girl waving at her, until she realized that it was Kate. Chloe couldn't hide her amazement, when she walked to the smaller girl. Kate was looking the complete opposite of her usual appearance. The low-neck t-shirt revealed her collarbones and the push-up bra drew a tempting furrow just above the neckline. The tight jeans emphasized the lines of her petite legs and the cardigan gave the ensemble a touch of elegance. In a word, Kate was looking hot.

"Who are you and what have you done with Kate Marsh?" Chloe asked, grinning.

"Hey, Chloe," Kate greeted the punk with a slight slur in her voice.

"Have you been drinking?" the punk asked, furrowing her brows.

"Uh, is it that obvious?" Kate asked back, slight embarrassment in her voice.

"Well, if the slurring doesn't give you away, the swaying does," Chloe said. "What have you been drinking?"

"R-rrhhum," the blonde slurred.

"Where'd ya get rum from?"

"From Vicky," Kate snickered.

"Victoria?" Chloe frowned angrily. "Where is she? I'm gonna…"

"No, please wait!" the smaller girl grabbed her arm. "I asked her to."

"You asked her?" Chloe asked in amazement. "After the whole Vortex club incident I thought you'd stay clear from the stuff."

"After I found out that I was drugged, I decided I'd want a positive experience. Also after what happened to Max I've began to think that I need to live a little," Kate explained, hoping that her buzzedness would hide the fact that the truth couldn't be further from what she just said.

"Hey, I'm not judging." The punk raised her hands. "You look hella nice, by the way."

"You like?"

"Yeah, me like." The compliment was rewarded with a smile.

"Shall we go inside?" Kate asked.

"We shall," Chloe answered. "And rest assured, I shall protect your dignity with all my might." She waved her arm theatrically.

"My knight in shining armor," Kate giggled.

"They stepped inside. The pool area where they had swum one night ago had transformed into a party lounge with balloons and neon lights. Surprisingly, no one was swimming but quite a few people were dancing by the pool to the rhythm of 'It's A Lie' by Fiction Plane. A projector was running a slideshow of pictures taken of Max and Rachel.

"Max and Rachel would've liked this," Chloe said to Kate.

"I think so too," the smaller girl agreed.

"Well, since there's no point of being sober out of sympathy I'm going to see if I can find myself a beer," the punk stated. "Will you be ok in the meantime?"

"Shhhuuurre," Kate slurred back.

"I think there was a 'sure' in there somewhere," the bluenette grinned. "I'll be right back."

Chloe walked to the other side of the pool area, where there was a curtain separating a smaller section from the rest of the area. She had been to Vortex Club parties with Rachel, so she knew that it used to be a VIP section with restricted access but now there seemed to be no control at the entrance, so she made her way to the back.

The former VIP section looked pretty much the same as it used to be with tables, chairs and sofas scattered around the space. She saw Victoria sitting with Courtney and some other girls in one corner and eyeballing her. In the middle there was table full of beverages with Hayden Jones tending the serving.

"Hey, Price, wassup?" Hayden greeted the punk.

"Same shit, different day, y'know," Chloe answered. "You got anything stronger than lemonade here?"

"You're in luck, Zach and Logan just dropped a few cases of beer," Hayden said and reached under the desk. "Here ya go!" He passed a bottle of Coors to the bluenette.

"Thanks! Chloe said, screwing the cap off and taking a swig. "I'm gonna head back. Kate's there with me and I don't wanna leave her alone for too long."

"Ok, talk to you later," Hayden said. "And try to be discreet with the bottle in case someone from the staff wanders in."

Chloe walked back to the general section and looked around. Kate had moved to a slightly quieter spot. When the punk got there, she noticed that the smaller girl was looking all weird and wound up.

"Kate are you all right?" Chloe asked with concern.

Kate didn't answer. Instead she took the bluenette completely by surprise by wrapping her arms around her neck and pressing her lips against hers. Chloe's eyes popped wide open with amazement and the beer bottle slipped from her grip, smashing to the floor. The sound of breaking glass made the smaller girl open her eyes and see the expression on the taller girl's face. She let go of the punk and stepped back. Chloe just stood there, staring at the blonde, completely speechless.

"C-chloe, I-," Kate stammered, when she saw the expression on Chloe's face. "I-I'm sorry, this was a mistake!" she exclaimed and ran off.

It took a couple of seconds more, before Chloe recovered from her initial shock and was able to produce something comprehensible out of her mouth. "Kate, wait!" she yelled but the blonde was already out of the room. She ran after her but Kate was nowhere to be found.

"Aw, fuck!" Chloe cussed out loud.

She turned on her heels and walked back inside and into the back lounge, where she found Victoria still sitting. The punk walked to the blonde and dragged her furiously off the couch.

"What the-," Victoria scoffed angrily.

"Shut. Up," Chloe said sternly, blue eyes piercing straight into the green ones. "Kate just freaked out and ran off and I'm holding you responsible!"

The scowl on the blonde's face changed to concern. "Kate freaked out? What did you do to her?"

"I did nothing! I went back to her, when she all of a sudden grabbed and kissed me," the punk explained. "She freaked out and ran, before I had a chance to say anything."

"Oh," was all that Victoria could say.

"Since you got her drunk you're going to help me to find her, before she does something stupid," Chloe said, sounding more frantic than stern.

"What do you mean?" the blonde asked bemusedly.

"The evening after Max was killed Kate came onto the dorm roof with the intention to jump down. If I hadn't been there, she would've probably done it."

"Oh my goodness!" Victoria exclaimed, before she furrowed her brows. "Why were you on the roof?"

"Because... because I was gonna put a bullet in my head!" Chloe blurted. "Happy?"

This time Victoria didn't say anything. She just covered the inadvertent gasp with her hand.

"Look, I want you to go and check the dorm, since you have access there," Chloe instructed the blonde. "I'll check the surroundings."

"Uh, okay," the blonde agreed.

"Okay, let's go!"

* * *

Kate sat in her bed sobbing and sniffing. All her clothes were in a bundle on the couch and she was wearing just an oversized t-shirt and panties. The buzz from the rum was beginning to wear off and be replaced by the side effects of intoxication. _This_ _time I'd actually_ want _to forget everything that happened!_ she thought as she stared the floor.

In her mind she went through the events that had lead her into her dorm room feeling sorry for herself. When Chloe had left Kate to get herself a beer, her anxiety had taken over her again. Even in her intoxicated state she couldn't gather the courage to tell the bluenette how she felt about her, so she had decided to put all her stakes into one desperate act. When the punk had returned, Kate had jumped to her neck and kissed her. For the slightest of moment, she'd felt the warm moisture and softness of the bluenette's lips on hers. Then the beer bottle had smashed to the floor and the spell had broken.

When Kate had seen the expression on the bluenette's face, she'd come to face the finality of her action. She couldn't take it back even if she wanted to. Distraught about the punk girl's reaction, she had run straight to the dorms and into her room, ripped off her clothes and curled into her bed.

 _What was I thinking when I thought that Chloe could possibly be interested in me in that way,_ Kate thought, when she wiped her nose. _How will I be able to face her tomorrow?_ She was startled, when someone suddenly knocked on the door.

"Kate, it's Victoria, are you there?" the taller blonde asked behind the door.

"Please go away," Kate sobbed.

"Are you all right, Kate?" Victoria persisted. "Listen, Chloe told me about the roof."

"She… told?" Kate asked back. The memory of her moment of desperation made her stomach twist.

"She told that you both were there with the same intent," Victoria said. "I… I realize that I'm at least partially responsible for putting you in such a desperate situation. I would have never forgiven myself, if something had happened to you." A pause, then a sniff. "I will never forgive myself that I made you even consider such an act."

"Victoria… I will not harm myself, I promise," Kate assured. "Please tell Chloe that. I just want to be alone for now."

"All right," the taller blonde said. "I'm in my room if you need something."

* * *

Chloe was sitting in her and Rachel's hideout at the American Rust junkyard, smoking a joint to calm down from the turn of events earlier in the evening. A storm lantern cast its gleaming light into the wrecked outhouse.

Victoria had texted her that she had found Kate and relayed the smaller blonde's wish to be alone. She had also promised to keep an eye on her for the rest of the night, so Chloe had decided to drive to the junkyard to clear her thoughts.

Kate's kiss had taken the punk completely by surprise. She felt both flattered and bemused about the whole thing. She herself had begun to develop feelings towards the smaller girl but she could not have even begun to think that Kate might feel the same. Chloe just hoped that she had not blown the whole thing with her inadvertent reaction.

Chloe took another drag from her joint as she picked up her phone and began texting.

**Chloe 10/10/2013, 10:45 p.m.: Kate, u ok?**

**Chloe 10/10/2013, 10:46 p.m.: I'm not upset or anything, just surprised that's all. I'd like to talk to you about this evening.**

The punk pressed send and waited if Kate would respond. After a couple of minutes and no response, she tucked the phone away and took Max's diary in her hand. She'd had it in the truck for the whole time so she had thought she'd take a look at it while she was here.

There was something tucked between the pages, so Chloe opened the diary at that point. It was a Polaroid of a blue morpho standing on the edge of a bucket. _Awesome sauce, Max,_ the bluenette thought as she examined the photo. She put the photo aside and looked at the writing beneath. The buzz from the weed evaporated completely from her head, when she read the first lines.

_Dear Chloe,_

_If you are reading this, it means I am dead._

**To be continued...**


	5. Chapter 5

**Friday**

_If you are reading this, it means I am dead._

Chloe stared at the written line in Max's diary in shock. _But how could she possibly have known?_ the punk thought in amazement. She pulled her beanie off and continued reading.

_Shocker, huh? I wish that these pages would contain the complete recap of the five days that changed my life, and yours. Alas, due to circumstances it has all been erased and you have to settle for this summary._

_I guess by now you've trying beat your brains out how it was possible that I knew that Nathan was going to be there with the gun. As incredible as it may sound, I've already lived that day and the following days once, so I knew what was going to happen._

_Yeah, it sounds pretty amazeballs to me too, when I'm writing it on paper. Maybe it's better that I start from the beginning. I was there in that restroom, when Nathan came there but originally I didn't confront him. Instead, I hid behind the stalls. Then you came in and you ended up in a quarrel with him, then Nathan pulled his gun and... Do I really need to write it down for you?_

_The story could've ended there and it would be me grieving over you and not vice versa. But somehow, for reasons unbeknownst to me, I was granted powers which enabled me to turn back time and prevent the shooting from happening._

_At first, to be able to rewind time felt like a blessing. I was able to make things for the better and I managed to save your butt a few times in the process. Then I came to realize that all the changes I did turned the ulterior outcome little by little for the worse, until I was facing the ultimate price of my meddling with the timeline, an enormous tornado that would consume the whole of Arcadia Bay. Oh, trust me, you were there too._

_It was you who came up with the solution to prevent Arcadia Bay being destroyed. In addition to be able to rewind time I was able to jump to a certain point in time by focusing on a picture taken at that point. It so happens that I had taken a picture of a morpho in the restroom just before Nathan came in. You were willing to do the biggest sacrifice of all by asking me to go back to that moment and let Nathan shoot you, so that the tornado wouldn't happen. I didn't want to do that as, after all that we'd been through, it just felt so unfair. Still, you managed to convince me to go back. I never could say 'no' to you, could I?_

_So I went back and sat there, waiting for the history to take its course. While I was sitting there, I began to think that why should it be you who has to sacrifice herself to prevent this from happening? I mean, life's been giving you shit since your dad died and I had to move to Seattle. For a moment it looked brighter for you, when Rachel came into your life (yeah, I know about her) but then she was also taken from you. I began to think that you deserved some slack, I mean you didn't ask for me to start screwing with time and wreak death and destruction. Well, neither did I but here I am. Long story short, I decided that I'd take my chances with Nathan, perhaps try to talk him down. It may cost me my life, you never know. That's why I'm using my powers for the last time to write down these lines in case I won't make it out alive._

_Which brings me to the part I've been wanting to say to you ever since I started writing this letter:_

_I'm sorry._

_I'm sorry that I didn't have the courage to reach out for you. To come to see you, to call you, to mail or write to you. God knows I wanted to but I was afraid. I was afraid that you'd still be mad at me or that you'd moved on. Maybe, if I had reached out for you earlier, neither of us would be in this situation._

_I'm also sorry that you don't have a memory of these five days that we spent together as they never happened to you in this timeline. They were the best days and also the worst days of my life. Oh, don't worry, none of the bad parts were related to you. You made the best bits of those five days. Your counterpart in that timeline said that these five days were the best farewell gift she could hope for, so I suppose she enjoyed them too. It makes me sad that you have to settle for my scribblings instead of that._

_Having said that, I'm sorry that I wasn't able to save the both of us and Arcadia Bay. I'm speaking for myself here but I have no doubt about my feelings towards you. I love you, Chloe Elizabeth Price. There, I said it. Max Caulfield is hella gay for Chloe Price! I suppose I knew it from the moment when your counterpart double dared me to kiss her and I did. It felt wonderful. It just breaks my heart that neither of us will be able to see where that path would've taken us._

_Ok, moving forward. I'm hoping that my death will unravel a few things but in case it doesn't, I just hope you get this in time, as lives are at stake._

_First and foremost, Mark Jefferson and Nathan have been drugging girls and taken them to an old abandoned barn owned by the Prescott family. Under that barn is a bomb shelter that Jefferson has converted into a dark room with financial support from the Prescotts. He keeps the girls drugged and takes explicit photographs of them. We discovered it, when we tried to find out what happened to Rachel, which brings me to the second thing..._

_I don't know how to smoothen this so I'm just gonna say it: Rachel is dead. Nathan accidentally overdosed her when he attempted to copy Jefferson's work. They buried her to the Junkyard, near the bus. There's a piece of her clothing right next to her grave. The dark room also contains photographic evidence of her burial._

_I'm so sorry for your loss. I know how much Rachel meant to you. I'm glad that you had her by your side, when I wasn't there._

_Last but not least, you know Kate Marsh. She was one of Jefferson and Nathan's victims. You are probably aware of the viral video that Victoria Chase took of her at the last Vortex club party. Kate drugged by Nathan and she was under the influence of those drugs on that video. Kate however doesn't know that and she thinks that she has disgraced herself and her family. She is planning to kill herself by jumping down from the dorm roof. As I said, my death will hopefully reveal the truth about this but in case it doesn't I hope you get this in time in order to prevent her from jumping off that roof. Anyway, Kate could probably use a friendly shoulder and honestly, I couldn't think of anyone better than you to be there for her._

_David, yes your stepfather, has almost all the necessary evidence to bring Jefferson and Nathan down. Again, in case my death doesn't bring everything into the light, you need to work together with David to crack the case. You'll also need the client list from Frank and Nathan's mobile phone. If you get Nathan, he'll give you Jefferson. A part of me feels sorry for Nathan. In the end he's just a troubled kid abused by his father and used by Jefferson. Having said that, it doesn't make what he did to Rachel any more justifiable and he deserves whatever's in store for him. Besides, he did kill me, didn't he?_

_While I realize I really don't deserve it after being such a shitty friend to you for the last five years, I'm still hoping you would grant a few last wishes for me, me being dead y'know._

_Assuming that my parents respected my wish, my body should be cremated and my ashes divided into two urns, of which you should be getting the other. If you got the urn, I'd wish you'd go to our special place and scatter the ashes there._

_The next one is completely optional. Before you scatter my ashes, would you take a small amount of it and put it in the casing of one of the bullets in your necklace? I'd love the idea that part of me would always be with you. But as I said, it's completely up to you. For all I know you'll just put the urn on top of your fireplace, next to the snow dome. :P Yes, I know, no emoji._

_My folks will probably come to empty my dorm room at some point. There are a couple of things I'd like you to have. First is my guitar. It's old and worn but it stays in tune. The other thing is my teddy bear. Remember the time he lost his eye? Maybe you'll fix him up some day. Then there's Lisa, my plant. You'll probably do a better job keeping her alive than I did. I've instructed my folks to give them to you._

_I've asked Mom and Dad to split my photographs into three. Choose one of the lots for yourself, the other one for Kate and my parents get to keep the rest._

_Since you already have William's camera, give mine to Victoria Chase. I'm sure she can appreciate the irony of the gesture. Don't be too hard on her. Under that bitchy shell of hers, she's ok._

_Finally, I'd just like to say that you have the potential to be whatever you want. I'm not gonna tell you what to do with your life though. I do hope you can find a way to channel all that anger you're carrying into something positive but otherwise, just follow your heart. Whatever it is you decide to do, I'll always have your back._

_Now, and forever._

_With love,_

_Max_

_P.S. Please give David some slack. He for cereal saved my life._

Chloe closed the diary and wiped the tears off her cheeks. _Damn you, Max! You should've let me die! You deserved to live hella more than me._ She had no doubt about what Max had written wouldn't be true. Somehow her dead friend had spent five days with her and rekindled their friendship, and apparently taken it further – until she had had to take it all back to save the town from an impending destruction.

"You just had to be the hero, didn't you Max?" the punk said to the diary. "It's-, it's just that I always get left behind."

Chloe took a cigarette from the pack and lit up. She sighed a trail of smoke out of her mouth and rest her forehead against her palm. She opened the diary again and looked at one particular line.

_I love you, Chloe Elizabeth Price._

_Max loved me. She loved me._ Chloe wiped off another trail of tears. _She loved me so much that... that..._ "Oh, Max!"

The punk sat on the floor, sobbing and taking drags from her cigarette in turns. She knew exactly why she had taken Max's departure to Seattle so hard. She'd loved the brunette already back then. Max's posthumous declaration was another sign of life's twisted irony. Like the ultimate 'kick me' sign on the back.

The bluenette stood up slowly. She left the diary on the table and grabbed a bottle of beer from the cardboard container. The cigarette hung slack between Chloe's lips as she walked to the empty hole that marked Rachel's burial site. She stared emptily at the hole as she flicked the burned out cigarette butt away and she took a swig from the beer bottle. The malty beverage tasted stale in her mouth.

"Fuck...," she muttered between her lips.

"Fuck," she said louder as she felt the anger building up inside her.

"Fuck!" she exclaimed furiously.

"FUCK!" the punk tossed the half-empty bottle into the pit angrily and fell on her knees howling through her tears.

Chloe kept on crying for what in her mind felt like an eternity. Then, all of a sudden she stopped. She wiped her tears and narrowed her eyes.

"No…," she breathed out.

"No!" she shouted and stood up slowly.

"NO FUCKING WAY!" she yelled to the nightly sky and extended her arms, flipping both her birds. "Fuck you, life! You wanna give me shit? Then bring it on, because I ain't budging!" the punk kept yelling angrily as she walked around the pit. "Is this the best you can do, hurting me through my loved ones? Well, you gotta do better than that because you only made me hella angry! - If that's the best you can do, you'd better run because I'm gonna come and make you my bitch!"

Chloe's furious ranting was interrupted by the vibration of her phone. She stopped and picked up the phone. There was a message:

**Kate 10/11/2013, 0:17 a.m.: I'm ok, or at least I will be.**

**Kate 10/11/2013, 0:17 a.m.: Let's talk tomorrow after the funeral.**

Chloe tapped on the text field to type a response but Kate's status was now showing offline. The punk put the phone back into her pocket. She cast a final glance at the pit before turning and walking away.

* * *

Kate logged off from the messaging application and tossed her phone on the sofa. She had finally dared to take a look at the arrived messages. She didn't know though, whether she should be relieved or not that Chloe wasn't upset about her ill-fated kissing attempt. She figured that that a conversation about what had happened yesterday evening was inevitable.

Kate cast a quick glance at the gage where her rabbit, Alice was slumbering. Sometimes she really envied the white little bunny. She just went on with her everyday life without worries, without all the drama. Chloe was actually the least of Kate's problems. How could she tell her family that she might be gay? _Auntie Marsh would probably get a stroke,_ she thought. _But how am I supposed to continue living, if I'm not true to myself?_

The blonde was distracted from her thoughts, when someone knocked on the door.

"Katie, it's Victoria again," Kate heard the taller blonde say. "Just checking everything's okay."

Kate hesitated a single moment, before she closed her eyes and sighed. "Please, come in. It's not locked," she finally said.

The door opened and Victoria stepped in. The ever so groomed appearance was slightly broken by the concerned look on her face. "Oh my goodness, look at you!" the taller blonde exclaimed and proceeded to pick up a tissue to wipe the smudged face of the smaller girl.

This side of Victoria didn't cease to surprise Kate, even though she had had the chance to witness it during the last few days. It made her wonder what had caused the taller girl to build up such a hard shell in the first place.

"I made a fool of myself again, didn't I?" Kate asked laconically.

"Well, at least you took everyone involved by surprise," Victoria answered. "At least yours truly. It had never crossed my mind that you might sway that way."

"It hadn't crossed my mind either, until this week," the smaller blonde sighed. "I mean, my whole life I've been raised to think that homosexuality is a sin. – Don't get me wrong, I've personally tried to be open minded about other people's sexualities, but now I'm in conflict between my faith and my sexuality."

"But if you're okay with other people's sexuality, why can't you be with your own?"

"I… I don't know," Kate said after a moment of thought. "I suppose I'm trying so hard to fill the expectations that have been set to me."

"Expectations," the taller blonde snorted. "I know all about that. My folks put so much pressure on me that sometimes I feel I'm crushing under it." She sat down next to the smaller girl and sighed. "To stay on the top in the art world you really need to be able to act tough. If you show a slightest sign of weakness or vulnerability, the others will run over you."

Kate was beginning to see the Queen Bee of Blackwell in a completely new light. She also realized that Victoria was placing a great trust on her by revealing her gentler and vulnerable side.

"I've seen your work, Victoria," she turned to face the other girl. "You shouldn't waste your creative energy on disparaging others, as your art can easily stand on its own feet."

"Perhaps," the pixie blonde thought out loud. "These last few days have really put things into perspective for me. Maybe it's time for a change."

Kate sighed in frustration. "For me, the last few days have just made my life so much complicated. What am I supposed to do?"

"How do you feel about Chloe?"

"She's blunt, obnoxious and headstrong, but then she's caring, inspired and protective. There's just something about her that makes my heart jump every time I see her. I-, I..."

"You love her?"

"Yes," the smaller girl whispered barely audibly.

"Well," Victoria looked her straight in the eyes, "I think you should tell her that."

* * *

The afternoon sun made the wrought iron gate of the Arcadia Bay Cemetery stand out majestic among its surroundings. It also brought out the rusty spots on the worn sign that was on top of the gate.

Chloe was standing in front of the gate. She hadn't been here for some time. When her father had died, she had visited his grave on daily basis. She'd sat by the gravestone and cried. When time had passed, her anger and disillusion hand grown and the visits had become more infrequent, until one day she had stopped going to the cemetery altogether.

She was wearing the same outfit she had worn for the memorial service yesterday. She took her beanie off and tucked it into the jacket pocket. Chloe watched how other people walked through the gate but she remained standing.

 _Ok, Price, let's get this over with,_ the punk thought, as she finally took the few steps through the gate. She didn't follow the rest of the people to the place where the service would be held, instead she turned on one aisle and walked for a while until she stopped by one grave. The gold plating on the letters had begun to fade but the name was still easily readable on the granite surface.

_WILLIAM ROBERT PRICE_

_Beloved husband and father_

_1970 – 2008_

"Hey, Daddy, it's been a while," Chloe said to the gravestone. "Sorry that I haven't been visiting you lately." She could feel the corner of her eye getting wet as she tried to swallow the imaginary lump in her throat. "Max and Rachel are arriving there any time now. They must be hella confused, so could you please look after them? I promise I'll visit you more often from now on. Deal?"

The gravestone stayed silent. "I'll take that as a yes," Chloe said smiling. "Thanks, Daddy!"

The punk stood by the grave for a few moments, before she took a few steps back. "I gotta go now, Daddy. Gotta go pay my last respects to Rachel. Talk to you soon." She turned on her heels and walked to the direction she had come from.

Chloe made her way to the spot where people had gathered around a coffin. The crowd was considerably smaller than the one that had attended the memorial yesterday, consisting mostly of family members and friends. Joyce and David were there, as well a select few of Rachel's classmates, including Dana, Juliet, Justin and Trevor. Michelle Grant was representing the Blackwell Academy. Rachel's parents were standing next to the coffin. James Amber did his best to keep a stoic expression and to support Rose, who looked like she would collapse any moment.

It took a moment for Chloe to make out Kate from the crowd. She was standing separate from the other Blackwell students, although not alone as Victoria was standing next to her and having her arm around the smaller girl's shoulder. Chloe found herself feeling slightly resentful about the sight and raised her eyebrows in amazement. _Chloe Price, you're not jealous over Kate, are you?_ She smiled shortly at the thought.

Kate saw her glancing at her. The small girl nodded slightly and let out a hint of smile. Chloe let out a discreet grin in response and waved her hand in greeting. She didn't join the other girls though. Chloe knew that if she went to Kate, a conversation about last night would be unavoidable and this wasn't the time or place for it. Instead she walked to the Ambers.

"Afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. A. How are you holding up?" the bluenette asked from the couple.

"Oh, hello again, Chloe," James Amber answered. "It's devastating to think that our daughter is lying in that coffin. On the other hand, it's actually relieving to get some kind of closure after a half a year of uncertainty."

"Yeah," Chloe admitted. "As much as it breaks my heart to know she's gone, I'm glad that she's no longer missing."

The Minister arrived and the crowd gathered around the coffin. The slight murmur quieted down as he cleared his throat.

"We are gathered here to bless Rachel Dawn Amber on her final journey..." the Minister's words faded away in Chloe's mind as she reminisced the times she spent with her friend.

" _That's a cool tat."_

" _Thanks!"_

" _Did it take long?"_

" _Four months."_

" _Looks amazing!"_

" _Hey, can I bum a smoke from you?"_

" _Sure, help yourself."_

" _Thanks! I'm Chloe."_

" _Rachel."_

_..._

" _Pass on that joint, will you?"_

" _Here ya go."_

" _Thanks!"_

" _I'm so ready to leave this shithole for a town."_

" _Me too, Chloe. Can't wait for the school to end, so that we can shake off the dust of this town and head out for LA."_

" _It's gonna be so awesome!"_

" _LA's not gonna be cheap. We'll need money to get started."_

" _Don't worry, I've got that covered."_

" _What do you have in mind?"_

" _Trust me, it's fool proof."_

" _Famous last words…"_

" _Shaddap, dork!"_

…

" _You seem distant, Rach. Something wrong?"_

" _What? Oh, nothing! Just thinking about us going to LA, that's all."_

" _You're not getting cold feet, are you?"_

" _Oh no, Chlo. Can't wait to get there. A few more weeks and then it's just us."_

" _I love you Rachel."_

Rachel had not requited her declaration then. Coming to think of it, Chloe couldn't remember her ever having said that she loved her. The blonde had always worked her way around the issue so that the bluenette had overlooked it. Chloe realized that maybe she didn't want to think that her love towards Rachel might be unrequited. _No, that's not true! Rachel did love me, she just didn't love me the same way I loved her._

Chloe lifted her gaze and looked around. Further back, on a distant pathway she could see Frank standing with Pompidou. The punk felt sorry for him. Despite all, she wished the man could've been here with the others to pay his respects to the woman he loved.

She almost turned her head away but a little further back she suddenly made out two does that were looking at the service intently. No one else seemed to pay attention to the animals that were standing between the gravestones. Her eyes grew wider when the realization hit her. A smile came upon her face as she looked at them. The deer turned around and slowly walked away before they disappeared into the shadows of the forest.

* * *

Kate stood quietly beside Victoria as the Minister went on with his sermon. Even though they had stayed up talking until the wee hours, Kate didn't feel at all tired. Same couldn't be said about the taller blonde who did her best to stifle the numerous yawns.

She looked at Chloe who was standing by the coffin. The blue-haired girl seemed abstract and was watching into the distance. Kate couldn't see anything there, though. She did see a shady looking man with a dog standing a little closer, watching the service. She remembered having seen him at the school parking lot on a couple of occasions but she didn't know his name.

"That's Frank, the local drug dealer," Victoria whispered to the smaller girl when she noticed that she was watching him. "Rumor has it that Rachel was seeing him."

"Him?" Kate asked in disbelief.

Victoria opened her mouth with an acerbic look to say something but she paused to rethink her words and let her expression soften. "Rachel had many sides. I wonder if anyone but she herself actually knew them all," she finally said.

Kate looked at the taller blonde. She had not failed to notice that Victoria had withheld a more acidic remark. She could sense that this was more than just the remains of the traits that Victoria was now working to leave behind her.

"Are you uncomfortable being here?" she asked, loosening a slight gush of embarrassment from her companion.

"What? Sorry, no," Victoria stammered. "I mean there was a bitter rivalry between Rachel and me." The blonde looked away ashamed. "From time to time things got pretty ugly between us. It all feels so stupid and pointless now."

Kate placed her hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "I'm sure Rachel is watching us with Max from up there and they both can see this side of you that I'm seeing right now. You think you're vulnerable like this but I think you're at your strongest."

"Y-you really think so?"

"For cereal, as Max would say. I think they both would be proud to call this Victoria their friend – as would I." Kate turned to look the taller blonde and let out a heartwarming smile, the kind she hadn't let out since the Vortex Club party.

"Y-you really want to be my friend, after all I've put you through?" Victoria asked, taken aback.

"And after all you've done for me since," Kate said.

"The honor would be all mine," the taller blonde smiled back.

* * *

Chloe stood alone by Rachel's grave. All the others had left when the service had ended. Chloe had exchanged a few more words with Rachel's parents, before they had left also. Kate had stopped by and said that she would wait by the car. She looked at the temporary lid that covered the grave pit until it would be sealed.

"Well, Rach, here I am like I said I would," the punk said out loud, keeping her eyes fixed on the grave. "I suppose you and Max have already hit it off. That would've been hella fun to witness. I miss you both so much."

"I know about you and Frank. He told me. I should be mad at you but I'm not. I didn't realize it then but I realize now that you just wanted to be friends with me – friends with benefits. It's probably my fault too as I kept talking about Max all the time. Maybe you didn't want to commit to me because you saw I wasn't over Max. I admit that it wouldn't have been fair to you, even though my feelings for you were real."

"Anyway, I forgive you for Frank. I just wished you would've told me, but I suppose you didn't want to add to my misery. Or maybe you would've wanted to tell me but then… well this happened. What those fuckers did to you and Max… I don't know, Rach. The thought of you two being gone is almost too overwhelming. Yet, for whatever reason someone up there must still like me as he keeps on sending angels to save my bony ass. – And I keep on falling for them."

"I don't know what it is that Kate sees in me, so that she's willing to question her faith and defy her family. One thing I know, though. I'm gonna make sure that she never has to have second thoughts over choosing me."

"Goodbye, Rachel. You and Max will always have a special place in my heart."

Chloe stood quietly by the grave, letting her wistful gaze roam. Tears kept flowing down her cheeks but she didn't bother to dry them. From the corner of her eye, she could see Frank approaching, Pompidou loyally at his side. He stopped right next to her and looked at the grave without saying anything.

"It was a nice service," Frank finally broke the silence. "Rach would've liked it."

"Yeah, it was," Chloe simply answered.

"So, have you thought about my proposition?"

"I have," the punk answered, furrowing her brows slightly.

"So what's your answer?"

Chloe turned to look at the man, frowning even more. "You knew what my answer was going to be when you made your proposition," she said tension in her voice. "I'll help you to build your shelter but I have one condition."

"Oh yeah?" Frank asked curiously. "What might that be?"

"I want that you hold on to what you said about leaving the drug dealing behind," the punk said sternly. "If I see just a slightest sign that you're returning to your old ways, the deal is off and I consider my debt settled."

Frank stared the bluenette intensively for a moment, before he grinned. "Fair enough," he said and held out his hand. "Do we have a deal?"

"Yeah, we have a deal." Chloe shook the offered hand.

* * *

The lighthouse bathed in all the shades of gold as the setting sun cast its rays over the venerable tower. The sunlight also provided some warmth against the cool autumn breeze for the two young women standing near the edge of the cliff.

"This was our special place when Max and I were kids," Chloe said to Kate who was standing next to her. "Lot of swashbuckling occurred on these rocks."

"So Max had actually made a will before her death?" Kate asked, slightly bewildered about the fact.

"Well, not exactly," the punk corrected. "It was actually notes in her diary. Max had written down thoughts about life and death one day. In those lines she had expressed her wish that if she would die, her body should be cremated and that I should scatter half of her ashes into the ocean at this place." Chloe looked away. She felt bad about having to lie to Kate but she felt that Max had meant what she had written into the diary for her eyes only. Besides, the truth was so incredible that even she had still hard time believing it.

A new bullet hung on the bluenette's necklace. She had replaced the one in the middle with one that she had made this morning. The casing in the new bullet was filled with some of the ash from the urn that she was holding tightly in her hands. It turned out to be a blessing that her step... father was a gun nut, as he had the necessary equipment to make his own ammunition. It had been simply a matter of taking a slug and an empty casing, filling the casing with ash and inserting the bullet into the casing.

"Well, here we are, Max," Chloe said and opened the urn. "Just like you wished. Kate's here with me." She turned to face the small blonde.

"Um, hi, Max," Kate said timidly.

Chloe and Kate walked closer to the edge. The punk gave the lid to the smaller girl and took a firm grip of the bottom of the urn. "Farewell, Maxaroni!" she said as she poured the contents of the urn over the edge.

The ashes kept falling down towards the water, when a gust of wind suddenly caught them and pulled them up in a twisting motion, making them look like a small tornado. They continued spinning towards the ocean until they suddenly dispersed.

"Wow, that was… strange," Kate gasped.

"Hella strange," Chloe concurred.

"I still can't believe she won't be knocking on my door and joining me for tea," the blonde said melancholically.

"I would've given anything just to be able to see her once more, to be with her, even if it was just for few days," the punk said, tears in her eyes. In another reality, according to Max's diary, she'd gotten those days. In this reality, though, she had no knowledge of the time she'd spent with her friend. Or maybe she was even more than just a friend. _I wonder if Max ever told the other me how she felt?_ Whatever the case was, the brunette had taken it to the grave with her.

"One day we'll see her and Rachel again," Kate said reassuringly.

"You really believe so, don't you?" Chloe asked the obvious.

"That's how I want to believe, regardless of my faith."

"You know, I could roll with that." The punk cast a smile towards the smaller girl. She replaced the lid on the urn and stepped away from the edge.

"Ok, with that out of the way, there's still the hot topic of yesterday night," Chloe said making the other girl turn beet red.

"I was wondering when that would come up," Kate said, cheeks burning hot.

"Hey, it's all right," the bluenette assured. "Like I said I'm not upset or anything. It was just a bit... unexpected."

"Well, it kinda was unexpected for me too," the blonde admitted. "I mean, regardless of my upbringing, I've always tried to be open minded towards other people's outlook on life in all of its aspects. Still, I always thought I'd go the traditional way: go to college, meet some nice boy and start a family. I didn't expect that the person I'd fall for would be a sassy punk girl with blue hair and the biggest heart under all that attitude." She turned to smile at Chloe who had blushed in turn.

"I-, I didn't realize that you felt that way about me. Well, until yesterday," Chloe said quietly.

"I was afraid to talk you about my feelings," Kate explained. "That's why I got drunk, to conquer my fears." She let out a snort. "It didn't go quite as I had planned it."

"Well, you were hella braver than me," Chloe said. "I probably wouldn't have dared to say anything even if I had been completely stoned."

Kate's brows rose a notch. "You mean…?"

"I think I am falling for you too," the punk answered. "You are the kindest, gentlest and the most unselfish person I know – and one of the few who won't just put up with my bitchiness."

"So, how do we take it from here?"

"I dunno," Chloe shrugged her shoulders. "We don't have to rush it. If you need to figure yourself out, I'm totally cool with that."

"Yes, I probably do," Kate admitted. "This is going to be a huge change for me, in all possible ways. I need to be sure that this is what I really want."

"I-, I understand," the bluenette said, slightly discouraged.

"But while I'm figuring it out, I want to be open to new feelings and experiences," the smaller girl said, letting out another heartwarming smile and placing her hands on the punk's cheeks.

Chloe felt how the other girl pulled her closer. She didn't resist, though. She followed the smaller girl's lead until their lips met. Unlike last time, the kiss wasn't abrupt and rushed. Kate's lips felt smooth, almost velvety, accompanied by the warm moisture. The bluenette let her tongue creep tentatively against those silky lips and proceeded forward when they parted invitingly. She felt the other girl's tongue standing by hesitantly. Chloe swirled her own tongue invitingly around Kate's and was rewarded with the other tongue cautiously exploring the insides of her lips and then slowly beginning to swirl around hers.

Chloe felt a warm sensation fulfilling her body. She would've wanted to give into the sensation and just let go but that would've been too much too soon. She slowly withdrew herself from the blonde and smiled at her.

"Wow! That was..." Kate said, trying to catch her breath. Her face was glowing.

"Yeah, it really was," the punk concurred. She could feel the glow on her own cheeks too.

"I think I'm going to enjoy figuring things out."

"I think so too."

**THE END**


End file.
